Fools
by Linsneakers
Summary: ::Spoilers:: They had all been Fools. ::Mainly Adachi & Souji Drabbles::
1. Chapter 1

Fools  
**[Awkward]**

Souji always found it weird that he and Adachi had very similar voices, so when they were forced to sing a duet in karaoke… The atmosphere felt a bit…awkward.

**[Bruise]**

"Souji-kun, what's that on your neck?"

"Huh?"

"Here, can I look?"

"Huh? Oh… Uh… S-Sure?"

Adachi glared at the mark near the back of Souji's neck, just barely reaching underneath his ear. The detective moved behind Souji and lightly folded his collar so he could see better. Adachi blinked, before turning the teen around, gripping his shoulders tightly.

"There's a damn bruise all the way down your back, Souji." He looked straight into Souji's eyes, before the teen shyly looked away and said nothing. "Who did this to you?"

"N-Nobody… I was just clumsy… And fell down some stairs…"

"That's the excuse everybody gives when they're scared if they say anything. Souji, I promise you that you'll be safer if you tell either Dojima or myself, but since I'm here, _who did this to you_?"

"Nobody! I swear! Even ask Yosuke! I just fell down the stairs at school…"

"…Really?"

"Really."

"If I find out you're lying…"

"I'm not!"

Adachi glared, before sighing, "…All right, fine. But don't hesitate to talk to me or your uncle if anyone's bullying you, understand?"

Souji nodded. He wished he got the bruise from heroically fighting Shadows like a badass, or indeed from getting bullied, but…he really did just fall down the stairs…

**[Charcoal]**

Souji always wondered how Adachi's charcoal eyes could shine so brightly with innocent mischief. It was weird seeing something so dark be so…light.

**[Deception]**

"You… You deceived me! You deceived us!"

Adachi could only laugh, "I didn't deceive anyone. After all, this _was_ just a game, even to you, right, Souji-kun~?"

**[Edge]**

He was over the edge of his breaking point. The sheen of the gun in his hand reflected the moon's surface as he sat alone at the Riverbed. He lightly tossed it in the air a couple of times, eyeing the revolver as it moved. There was nothing that would stop him from doing this, but he wanted an audience first. He wanted to see their horrified faces to be the last thing he saw, as he started pulling the trigger.

It would probably be the only thing worthwhile in this broken, boring town.

Minutes passed as the pale moon continued to be his only company. Then he heard sirens clash with the sounds of the river. Then footsteps. Lots of them.

He slowly stood up from where was sitting, walking towards the road to initiate the landmark. Dojima was the first to arrive, and almost tripped from the sight of him with a gun to his head, devilish smirk on his face.

"S-Stop this!" the detective yelled, "Don't be an idiot, Souji! If there's something you need to talk about, talk to me, I'll listen!"

Then Adachi appeared, followed by Yosuke, Chie, Yukiko, Kanji, Rise, Naoto and Teddie. There were other cops, of course, but Souji didn't really care for those he didn't know. Everyone was trying to persuade him to put the gun down, and Adachi was as pale as the moon. The young detective would probably never use the gun again once Souji pulled the trigger. How simple it was though, to steal a gun from a cop.

"Souji... What about Nanako? Do you have any idea what this will do to her?"

The smirk stayed on his face. He didn't care. He was over the edge of his breaking point. He was falling through an abyss nobody could help him out of.

His finger twitched on the trigger, and those horrified faces were probably the best thing he'd ever seen before they faded to nothing.

**[Fear]**

Adachi grit his teeth, gripping tightly onto Souji's hair, aiming his gun right between the teen's eyes.

"I'm not scared, you know." The teen whispered.

"Yes, you are."

"No—"

"Quit trying to act like a fearless leader; you're scared out of your skin! Admit it!"

Adachi grinned when Souji slowly broke down, tears streaming down his face as he begged and pleaded for the detective to not pull the trigger. Even the most courageous people had to feel fear at some point.

**[Gamble]**

Souji learned that the origin of the word "wedding" was gamble… So why did he randomly imagine Dojima and Adachi, who were gambling, getting married?

…Souji shivered. His mind would never be clean again…

**[Hero]**

"Thank you, Adachi-san! You're a true hero!" Souji laughed, grinning ear to ear as Adachi blushed.

"But…"

"See? The game even says you are!"

"Y...Yeah, I guess."

Adachi could only stare at the congratulation screen on the TV. A hero… Yeah, right.

**[Incapacitated]**

Souji was glad Nanako had gone to bed a couple of hours ago; he didn't want her to be caught up in the fiasco going on. Two drunken detectives fighting over which law show was the best wasn't the prettiest thing to see…or to be stuck in between. He was getting splashed with alcoholic beverages as the grown men leaned forward to glare at each other, waving their arms around. Souji was surprised beer was the only thing hitting him, seeing how wild their arms were flying and how he was sitting in the middle.

"Sooujii! Wh…What do y…you sthink?"

"Y-Yeah! Whaat do you th…think?"

Souji ignored them, even when they started playing tug-of-war with him. If they asked later (if they remembered), he'd just say he was too occupied by the show on TV to notice.

**[Judge]**

"You're telling me you've come back after two years, and the first person you see is _me_? The guy _you_ sent to jail for murder."

"Yes."

"And you didn't tell anyone you were coming to Inaba, let alone coming to visit me?"

"Right."

Adachi could only shake his head in amusement, a short smirk on his face. He had no idea what to say. He absolutely detested this kid, but he had always found him intriguing. He rested his chin on his hand, waiting for the other one to speak. Any words Adachi had had, they died on his tongue.

"I never judged you."

"…Hm?" the smirk fell from his face and a questioning eyebrow replaced it.

"Out of everybody I met, you were the only one I never judged."

Adachi leaned back in his chair, eyeing the teen weirdly. What the hell was he smoking?

"I had just wanted to know the truth. And now I understand your reasoning why you did it."

"Do you, now?"

"Yes."

Adachi could have sworn he saw Souji's eyes glow yellow for a split moment, before turning back to normal.

**[Kitten]**

Adachi looked down at the sleeping form of Souji, curled up tightly in a ball. The detective never thought there'd be a day he'd ever see how the teen looked now, completely pure and innocent, like a kitten.

…It made him sick.

**[Liar]**

"Adachi-san, you liar!"

"Huh?"

"You could have come with us to the movies! You weren't really on a date yesterday, were you?"

"I-I was!"

"Then how come your ears are twitching?"

"…W-Wha—?"

"Your ears twitch when you lie."

"…I…I see…"

**[Masquerade]**

Souji noted that hanging around Adachi was like going to a masquerade ball and playing the guessing game. The man was completely unidentifiable; it seemed like the aura around Adachi changed each passing day, and it was dancing circles around Souji.

**[Necktie]**

The moment Souji met Adachi and saw the man's crooked, deformed tie, the teen wanted to push the man against a wall and fix the damn thing. How could a grown man not know how to tie a tie?

**[Observe]**

Adachi had always been an observer, even when he was young. He liked observing people, whether they be strangers on a bus or people in a mall.

He'd observe them to criticize them in his head.

So why was it that when he observed Souji, he spent more time being intrigued than he did criticizing the boy?

**[Parasite]**

Friends were like parasites, leeching off of you to get what _they_ want, what _they_ need, what _they_ enjoy. But Adachi was shocked with Souji.

"You really don't have to do this, Souji-kun." He muttered as the boy continued filling the shopping cart with food.

"But I want to!" Souji smiled as he held up what he was holding to Adachi, to see if he nodded to say he liked it. "Besides, I have a lot of money to spare, and Uncle said one of your higher-ups docked your pay… right?"

"Y-Yeah…" Adachi sighed. Damn it, Dojima.

"Besides, we're friends, right?"

Adachi gave a short nod as they strolled through Junes, Souji continuing to get Adachi's confirmation about foods he liked.

Adachi didn't think of him as a friend, not at all, but he wouldn't mind being a parasite _once_ to get food that wasn't the same instant shit over and over again. Besides, Souji offered, so he wasn't really being a parasite, now was he?

**[Queen]**

"You know, Souji…" the teen turned, looking at the detective as they walked down the street, heading to Junes. "I was wandering through your school at lunch to question a teacher that called something in yesterday… And…I found pictures of the culture festival hanging on a bulletin board…and I saw you and your…guy friends…um…cross…dressing…"

"Oh, Chie signed us up for the cross dressing pageant against our will because Yosuke signed the girls up for the normal beauty pageant."

"I… I see… But isn't signing you up for a cross dressing contest a little extreme for…them getting signed up for just a normal beauty pageant?"

"Eh. I guess."

"So… Uh… who won?"

"Well, Teddie won, but that's only because he's already girly. I know I was the actual Queen of that pageant! Wouldn't you agree?"

"Yea—W-Wait, what?"

**[Restart]**

Adachi wasn't sure how many years it was until he was released from prison, he hadn't even been paying attention when he got his verdict. He'd known he'd be declared guilty. So when he finally got out, he had no idea what to do with himself, jail had him on a schedule that he got absolutely accustomed to.

Now that he was walking outside, towards the gates to finally actually get off the grounds of prison and be _free_, the last thing he was expecting was a visitor waiting outside.

"The hell do you want, kid?" he seethed once they were steps apart. It was Souji Seta, no doubt about that. He was obviously older, but nothing about him seemed to change much. He still had the same hairstyle, those same gleaming eyes, and that ever patient smile.

"I thought we could start over." He still sounded the same too. Used the same tone. Other than being older, he was exactly the same.

"Start over?" Adachi sneered, arms crossed as he leaned forward.

Souji's patient smile seemed to grow, "Yes, start over."

Adachi lowered his head, sighing angrily as he started scratching his leg with his other foot. "There's nothin' _to _start over, kid. Go try and be a saint for somebody else."

"I'm not trying to be a saint." Adachi stiffened when Souji placed a light hand on his shoulder. "I want to start over as acquaintances."

Adachi waved the younger man's hand away and straightened himself, shoving one of his hands in the worn jeans the prison had given him to wear outside. He sighed again and rolled his head before looking down at the other man.

The ex-detective slowly extended his free hand, the grin on Souji's face beaming as he gracefully accepted Adachi's hand.

**[Stare]**

Souji could only stare.

Adachi could only stare.

"What…_is_ that?"

"I…have no idea."

"It's a rabbit!" Nanako piped up, giggling at the men.

Souji and Adachi slowly looked at each other, then back at the TV, before feeling like all intelligence they had slowly withered away. It _was_ a rabbit on the screen.

**[Try]**

"Everybody says I'm a lost cause at being a detective…"

"Well, at least you try your best!"

"…That…didn't really help…"

**[Up]**

Adachi looked up at the teen that stood over him. Adachi couldn't help but laugh.

"Thinkin' you're all high and mighty, ya little—"

"No, I don't. But I think _you _think you are. Now stand up."

Adachi frowned, but he got to his feet. His hands were tingling at his sides. He could strangle the boy right now and nobody would realize it was him. Souji had come here on his own. He had chased Adachi down to Magatsu Inaba after he confronted the detective by himself. The teen went through all the obstacles the maze had to offer without any help from his friends whatsoever.

His eyes wandered to the boy's sword and his gun that was placed near the ledge, the teen placing them there after the fight was over.

His eyes wandered back to the boy, and he wanted to oh-so-badly raise his arms and start choking the living life out of the little brat, and then the kid would be looking up at _him_ instead of the other way around.

**[Vampire]**

"Adachi-san, do you like vampires?"

"Huh? Uh…yeah…I guess. Where'd that come from?"

"Never _ever _read Magical Witch Detective, even if Nanako makes you promise. It has nothing to do with magical witch detectives or anything of the sort, it has _sparkling_ vampires, and it was so bad, I had to go to the _hospital _because it gave me a _broken shoulder_. I wasn't doing anything but _staring at the cover of the book_, then all of a sudden BAM! Shoulder: Broken. _Never read it ever_."

"Uh… Okay… G-Good to know…?"

**[White]**

Adachi looked down at his shirt.

It was stained with blood. Even if he somehow managed to completely remove the blood, Adachi knew the shirt would never truly be white again.

**[X]**

Souji stared at the caution tape that formed an X. It was warning him not to go through there, it was telling him to go back home. He looked behind his shoulder at his friends, who were staring eagerly at the scene.

Souji ignored the warning and tore down the tape, rushing through the decaying roads.

**[Yesterday]**

Adachi could only stare. His mind went blank, and Dojima screaming (whether it was at him or not, he wasn't sure) wasn't enough to actually fully catch his attention. All he could do was stare and stare and stare past the yellow tape.

They'd talked yesterday! They'd laughed yesterday! He could have stopped this from happening… He should have walked home with him, to make sure he got home safely…

"_It'll be okay, Adachi-san, I'll be fine! You go on home, you look tired._"

He should have insisted…

Adachi closed his eyes tightly. He didn't want to stare anymore. But he found his eyes opening against his will anyway, and he found himself staring at the beaten, bloody, bruised and _lifeless_ body of Souji Seta.

Yesterday, he'd been alive.

**[Zero]**

Souji looked out his window, and stared at the pale moon in the sky. It'd been a month since he left Inaba, but he couldn't get his mind off it. He asked his parents if they could move there, but they only laughed and walked away. Inaba had been the nicest place he'd been too, discounting the murders and mysteries. He met friends that continued to talk to him after he left, instead of texting something once then never said anything ever again.

The teen lifted himself off his couch, and opened the giant windows, before sitting on the ledge. He didn't care that it was cold.

He squinted, trying to see in the distance, and maybe, just maybe, he could see the quiet town of Inaba. He knew that wouldn't happen though. Inaba was thousands of miles away.

He wore his school uniform from that town on his days off. Today was one of those days. He wouldn't let his parents, or the maid, wash it, he washed it himself. Souji slipped his hand in his pocket, before taking that oh-so-familiar card out of it. He raised it against the moonlight, Izanagi shining proudly and majestically as it seemed like he glowed.

Souji could only smile.

…Before it faltered.

It seemed like the sky slowly morphed into stripes of red and black, the city underneath him crumbling. He lowered his card, and everything went to normal.

Souji sighed, and looked over his shoulder, back into his room. Nothing was out of the ordinary. But of course there wouldn't be. His TV wouldn't flicker on at midnight ever again, he wouldn't have to help solve murders again, and he wouldn't have to use his Persona ever again.

He looked back to the moon, the only thing he could see was that woman in white, and he remembered her hovering over him as he lay on the road by the Moel Gas Station in absolute shock. Then he found himself lifting Izanagi's card to block half the moon, and half the city beneath him crumbled back into Magatsu Inaba.

The teen looked down when he heard the engine of a truck roaring beneath his feet. It was a mail-truck.

Souji gave a short laugh, before shaking his head and flicking his Persona's card back into his pocket. He lifted his knees to his chest and held his legs, continuing to stare out to the shining moon.

"_Children of Man… Well done…!_"

The words echoed in his head and he gave a short smile and he slowly retreated back into his room, closing the window again, pulling the curtains down.

He crawled into bed, not bothering to change into his pajamas. The events of Namatame, Adachi, and Izanami flooding back to him the instant he closed his eyes. He remembered every word, every pause, every raw emotion in all three events, and Souji couldn't help but mentally smirk when he felt Izanagi lightly burn in his pocket.

They had all been Fools.


	2. Chapter 2

Fools

**[Adamant]**

The two glared, Souji's baseball bat firmly held in his hands while Adachi's finger shifting lightly on his revolver's trigger. If Adachi tried shooting him, Souji would block the bullet with the bat. If Souji tried bashing the detective, Adachi would jump out of the way and shoot another bullet, which Souji would block.

Neither of them was going to back down.

**[Blur]**

Souji quietly wandered on his way to his new school. His mind wasn't on his new school, though, it was on that…odd dream he had the night before. He closed his eyes, trying to remember.

He couldn't; most of it was a blur.

**[Chill]**

When Adachi walked passed him, Souji immediately felt a cold breeze sink into his bones.

**[Death]**

Souji felt his throat dry. The world around him disappeared; even the cries of his uncle didn't reach his ears. All he could see, all he could hear, all he noticed was his young, little, pale cousin laying motionless in her hospital bed and the flat, single monotone sound from the machine hooked up to her.

Nanako was…dead.

Souji only wished it was him lying motionless on that bed, other than her. She was so young, she deserved to be alive. Death shouldn't have visited her… not yet.

**[Embers]**

Souji stared at the dying fire, then to the older man sitting beside him. The flickering flames reflecting in Adachi's eyes looked colder than ice.

**[Fly]**

For a moment, Souji noticed that falling through the TV felt like flying.

…Until he landed face-first on the ground.

**[Glance]**

Adachi took a quick look at the silver-haired teen before he walked back into the crime scene of Yamano's murder. Even if the glance was less than a second, the detective knew that boy was going to be a pain in the ass sooner or later.

**[High]**

Adachi blinked, staring at his hands then back at the TV. Had he just…_pushed_ that woman through it? Adachi felt a smirk grace his face, before he found himself trying to hide his laughter.

He knew what it was like to feel high as a teen, but now the feeling came rushing back, only this time, he had the power and control, not the drugs.

**[Immature]**

"I don't understand it."

"Don't understand what, Dojima-san?" Adachi inquired, peering at his superior.

The older man stared at the younger one, before taking another puff of his cigarette, "I don't understand how my teenaged nephew and daughter are so mature, and then you act like a total kid."

**[Jealousy]**

Souji seemed to get everything. Friends, girlfriends, money, good grades, just everything. It made Adachi sick to his stomach. He never had friends in school; he tried to make some, but they always backed away just at the sight of him. He never had a girlfriend as a teen, they'd scream and run. His jobs as a teen gave him low pay. His teachers hated him, no matter how correct his answers were, they'd always fail him.

Souji seemed to get everything.

It made Adachi see green.

**[Kaleidoscope]**

Souji noticed that staring at Adachi was like looking through a kaleidoscope: You never knew what you would actually see.

**[Loathe]**

Souji huffed, crossing his arms and sitting furiously on the couch. Adachi blinked. When Dojima said Souji'd been acting a little testy lately, the younger detective wouldn't have thought the teen would be so angry he looked ready to burst into flames.

"S-Souji-kun, what's—"

The glare Souji sent him was enough to shut him up immediately. Whatever it was that pissed the teen off, Adachi sure as hell hoped it wasn't, or never would be, him.

**[Mug shot]**

Mug shots were something Adachi found himself hating. He didn't know why or how it started, he just always hated mug shots.

But when he saw Souji getting one taken, he couldn't help but like at least one.

**[Never]**

"Adachi-san, have you ever told a lie?"

"Never."

**[Ordinary]**

Neither of them was ordinary.

But to each other, perhaps they were.

**[Pale]**

"Souji-kun, are you all right? You look really pale."

"Huh? It's just the lighting, I'm fine. Besides, I'm naturally pale in the first place. If I'm sick, I turn green…or red…or both."

**[Quiet]**

Adachi had noted Souji was a very quiet teen. He rarely spoke unless he needed to, and even his footsteps were quiet. Adachi never noticed him when the teen suddenly walked up behind him.

So when Nanako and Dojima were both admitted to the hospital, Adachi found himself staring at the teen more. It was as if Souji was absolutely muted silence. Not a sound appeared out of him.

**[Recipe]**

Nobody could believe it.

"Nanako, get the fire extinguisher!"

Dojima couldn't even make toast.

Souji and Adachi sighed.

"We made a recipe for disaster, huh?" the young detective muttered.

"Ignoring the awful pun," Souji murmured, "…Yes. Yes we did."

Perhaps forcing Dojima to cook something wasn't the greatest idea ever.

**[Strength]**

"Wow, Big Bro, you're so strong!"

"Adachi, how the hell did you even get this job?"

Adachi grumbled into the carpet he was laying face-first on. He didn't know how it happened, but him and Souji had started showing off who was stronger. Needless to say, he lost horribly.

"Well, I have been doing martial arts since I was four, Uncle…"

But who needed strength when he had the hidden talent to fool them all?

**[Tape]**

He couldn't see, he found it hard to breathe, his hands were locked in a terrible, awkward position, and his feet were locked too. He tried to move, he tried to scream, but he only fell over and his cries were muffled.

He squirmed on the floor, hoping that maybe, just maybe, he could get himself free from his bounds. Of course, this was useless. It wasn't rope. He could get himself out of rope, he got used to it in his other schools. So many of the students would tie up his hands and legs, gag and blind him, then stuff him in a closet. He wasn't sure how many times it happened, he wasn't sure how many tries it took before he finally got himself out with no help. But he got used to it. He could get himself out of any ropes.

But this…this wasn't rope. It was duct tape. He was never gagged, bound, and blinded by duct tape. Layers of duct tape. He…didn't know how to get out of this one. He was scared.

There was finally something he couldn't get out of.

**[Umbrella]**

Adachi wandered through Junes, flicking on the hood of his rain jacket as he walked outside, closing his bag of groceries (or…instant noodles and cabbages) as much as he could. He didn't have an umbrella, and most of the times he didn't need one, but today he wished he did. The rain was extremely harsh that night. At least his coat still blocked out most of the rain.

…But it still felt like he was being pelted by baseballs.

Adachi sighed. The walk from Junes to his apartment was a long one, and he wished it was sunny. He hated driving on days like this, and no matter how much he wanted to take out his car, he kept it parked in the lot.

Under a lone street light, the only one that was on, Adachi noticed someone standing under it, without an umbrella or even a raincoat. The detective frowned, getting closer. A couple more steps and he could tell it was Souji.

"Good evening, Adachi-san." The teen said as Adachi approached. His tone was absolutely emotionless.

"What are you doing out here without an umbrella or anything, Souji-kun? Your uncle's probably worried, you should be getting home."

"…Maybe."

Adachi frowned.

"C'mon, let's get you out of—"

"But I'm waiting."

"…Waiting for what?"

"For my umbrella."

"…Your…umbrella?"

"It flew away."

Adachi's frown grew and he looked the teen square in the eyes. They were as emotionless as his monotone voice.

"You're umbrella…flew away?"

"Yes."

But it wasn't even windy.

"Souji-kun, what's really—"

"My umbrella… It flew away."

**[Valley]**

He knew that if he and Adachi were in a valley, sitting on opposite sides of the giant tree in the middle, Adachi's side would be greener than his.

**[Warmth]**

Souji shivered. He'd underestimated the weather today and wore too little layers of clothing. He sat at the bus stop, waiting for it so it could take him to the Day Care. He wished he wasn't so tired, because the seat was absolutely cold. He could just skip the day and go home, but then he'd feel bad since he promised Yuuta he'd be there.

Souji shivered again.

Until he found something put on his shoulders.

The teen looked over, Adachi smiling, only wearing his shirt and tie. The detective had given him his jacket.

"A-Adachi-san, I can't—"

"Take it, Souji-kun. You need it more than I do. I have a car, and knowing Dojima-san, he'll be making me run around like a lap-dog when I get back anyway. Have fun at your job." And before Souji could reply, the man was off and walking down the sidewalk.

Souji shivered, before wrapping himself up in the jacket.

**[X-Ray]**

It always seemed like Souji was analyzing everything, looking through everyone, and plucking out the good and bad from their personalities.

Adachi could only wonder if the teen could see through him.

**[Year]**

A year went by too fast.

When he stepped on the train and the doors closed in front of him, Souji only wished they would open up again and start a whole new year for him in Inaba.

**[Zipper]**

"Adachi-san, your fly's undone."

"…Zipper's broken."

"…Why didn't you use a safety pin to fix it?"

"I'm not a baby, and jeans aren't diapers."

"…Well if you want people seeing your cabbage-themed underwear, go ahead."

"Why are you even looking there anyway, Souji-kun?"

"I saw the green."


	3. Chapter 3

Fools

**[AWOL]**

"Adachi, go and get me some—" Dojima turned around, facing an empty hallway.

He _really_ hated it when Adachi ran off without saying anything.

**[Better]**

When he heard Adachi play the piano, Souji slowly and quietly retreated to a corner and curled himself into a ball of sadness.

The detective was so much better at it.

**[Cool]**

"Oh, wow, Adachi-san! When did you get that motorcycle?" Souji asked, bewildered as the older detective took off his helmet and grinned joyously. If it weren't for the fact the bike looked brand new, had a custom-made licence plate that looked like an…abbreviation for cabbage, and how Adachi looked so absolutely _proud_, the teenager would have guessed that he stole it.

"I got it yesterday." Adachi's face grew a little grim as he carefully got off his new ride, "See, my father died and he gave me quite a bit of money in his will. And by quite a bit…I mean quite a lot. So, I decided to spoil myself."

Souji nodded, "I see… Sorry about your dad."

"Nah, idiot had it coming. He'd run around the streets naked and purposely pick fights in bars. I'm not surprised the cause of death was what it was."

"…I…I see…" Souji blinked, before smiling, "Anyway, standing next to that bike makes you look kinda cool, Adachi-san!"

"Only kinda?"

**[Disarray]**

Souji always wondered how Adachi's hair was always so messy. Didn't he have a brush at home?

**[Elephant]**

Souji stood at the doorway. If he wasn't so absolutely shocked and confused at the sight, he would have been laughing like Dojima on the couch.

"Oh, welcome home, Big Bro!" Nanako smiled, giggling cheerfully.

"Y…Yeah…" Souji could only keep staring with confusion.

"Don't look at me like that, Souji-kun! I am Chi-san, the magical elephant from Imagination Land who beats bad guys to a pulp!"

Adachi was wearing long paper ears out of gray construction paper, as well as a sock over his nose, giving Nanako a piggy-back ride. This was, no doubt, Nanako's idea, but the fact that Adachi didn't look the least bit drunk, and how he looked absolutely happy to be doing this, freaked the teenager out.

Nobody noticed Souji slowly walk back out the door.

**[Frozen]**

Everything felt cold. He couldn't move. His ears were ringing, his heart was slowing, his vision was blurry, and he was bleeding. He was losing so much blood. He could feel the liquid seep from his wounds, his body growing numb. He could barely hear the distressed cries of his friends. He could barely remember what happened… It was all a blur. Everything he seemed to know was fading with his vision and heartbeat.

He whimpered wearily when the fuzzy figure of Adachi stepped closer to him, his friends' screams getting louder. His ringing ears still overpowered them though.

The detective said nothing, and if his vision wasn't fading in and out of darkness, Souji bet he would have seen a sickening smile. He shivered when he felt the man's gun slide down his cheek. The weapon felt like ice, and his whole body went frozen.

He gave one last shaky breath before everything faded completely.

**[Grip]**

Souji smiled at the happy Nanako. He was glad his cousin finally got to spend a day with her father, and he guessed him as well. And Adachi, he was going to leave, but Nanako begged him to tag along. Her face beamed, and still was, when he finally gave in. The four had walked all the way to the Riverbed at Nanako's request.

"Oh, Dad, Big Bro, Adachi-san, let's go look at the fish!" she giggled, tugging on Dojima's arm to drag him down the stairs, Souji and Adachi following after.

"Be careful, Nanako-chan, you don't want your old man to fall in the river, now do you?" Adachi smirked as Dojima glared, before making sure his daughter didn't get too close to the water.

"Don't get any closer than that, Nanako, the river gets crazy this time of year." He ordered, the girl nodding in agreement.

Souji smiled, looking at his happy cousin and uncle, the cheerful Adachi, and the other families that were sitting joyfully by the riverbed. The teen walked over to where he fished and sat down, staring at the river below him. It was plenty of inches higher than it was a few months ago, and it was flowing by pretty fast. If Nanako fell in…

He shook his head. She wouldn't fall in, Dojima would make sure of that.

"Hey, Big Bro, we're gonna go get some topsicles!" Souji looked behind his shoulder, smiling at his cousin before he got to his feet…and ended up slipping, falling into the raging river.

He gasped for air when he managed to get his head above water. Well, him being thrashed around by the rocks and tiny rapids was better than Nanako.

The currents pulled him under again, and he struggled to resurface. His uniform snagged on a rock at the collar, consequentially choking him. He desperately squirmed to get out of his jacket, but it was no use, the clothing was practically attached to his skin.

He gasped and coughed when he was dragged out of the water. Adachi and Dojima pulled him to the bank, where he continued to cough out his lungs. When he shakily stood up, Nanako ran to him, hugging him so tightly he found it hard to breathe again.

For such a young girl, she had an extremely tight grip.

**[Helpless]**

The tears wouldn't stop. He was shaking and shivering and he felt like throwing up. But if he did throw up he would end up choking on it and die because his mouth was covered in tape, so he continuously forced the feeling away. His hands were numb, his arms were numb, his legs and feet were numb.

He wasn't restrained, he could rip the tape off his mouth, but it hurt too much. They wrapped it all around his head. They wrapped layers. And even though he wasn't restrained, whatever they had stuffed him in was so small, he was surprised he could still even breathe. He wasn't sure how long he'd been stuck in the constricted space, but he wanted out. He wanted out so badly. After they'd stuffed him in there, the assailants had pushed something in front of the door. From their swears and grunts, whatever it was, the object had been heavy.

There was no way he could get out by himself.

He wanted to cough, but that only brought back the feeling of nausea. All he could do was cry, and sob helplessly into the tape covering his mouth.

"…Did you hear that?" his heart started racing. Was that someone there to help him? He screamed as loud as he could, trying to move around to notify the people outside.

"Souji? Souji-kun, is that you?" he screamed more into the tape. He heard tapping on the walls of whatever was confining him.

"Souji-kun, you're going to be okay! We're gonna get you outta there, just hang on!" there was scraping on the floor, and more swearing and grunts. They were moving the object away from the door. And finally, dim lights entered his eyes as he stared at the pale Adachi and other cop behind him.

"Souji-kun, can you move?"

He shook his head.

"All right." The older man carefully helped the teen out of the beaten cupboard he'd been stuffed into. "Let's get this tape off you, okay?" Adachi flipped out a pocketknife and carefully cut away the tape, doing his best to keep the teen's head intact. He didn't feel like coughing anymore. He didn't feel like throwing up anymore. All he could do was take big, shaky breaths as his tears still continued to flow.

The detective picked him up and started walking to the front of the school, where paramedics, Dojima and plenty of other cops would no doubt be waiting.

"I can't believe you were in there for twelve hours. I'm so relieved you're okay. Dojima-san was practically ripping his hair out when you didn't come home."

Souji wondered if his Uncle had felt as helpless as he did.

**[Ice Cream]**

"Okay, Big Bro, truth or dare?" Nanako giggled, staring at her cousin earnestly.

"I guess I'll go with…dare this time." He smiled.

The young girl clapped, "Okay! I dare you to…uuuhm…" she glanced around, before eyeing the fridge, "Oh! I dare you to feed Adachi-san ice cream!"

Souji, Adachi, and Dojima stared at the girl, the smile falling right off Souji's face.

"…What."

**[Jail]**

"Tohru Adachi, the jury finds you guilty for the murders of Mayumi Yamano and Saki Konishi. You'll serve twenty-five years with no chance of parole."

Adachi smirked when the judge slammed his gavel and he was led away to his new home. Jail couldn't be that bad, right? At least he'd get three meals a day.

**[Kill]**

"Adachi-san," the detective turned, Souji fiddling with his thumbs. His knuckles were scraped and bruised.

"Yes, what is it Souji-kun?"

The teenager continued to shyly look at his hands, before looking at Adachi, "Uh…um… Have you…ever been so mad…you've wanted to kill someone?"

Adachi blinked, before looking at Souji's hands again. He glared, "Souji, you didn't—"

"No! I didn't really—I would never! I…I punched a wall out of frustration…"

"Souji-kun, you really should punch a pillow or something instead…" Adachi sighed, "Anyway… Yes, I have thought about killing someone. I'm sure everyone does in their lifetime."

"S-So it's not a bad thing, right?"

"Of course not!" Adachi paused, "…Unless you actually go through with it."

**[Lost]**

Adachi looked around. His surroundings were completely shrouded in fog, and he could barely see his hand in front of his face. He squatted, tapping the red blocks that acted like a road. He wondered if he should follow the road or not, wondering where it would lead. He couldn't quite tell if this was a dream or not. This town did get foggy quite a bit.

Deciding that just sitting around wasn't going to do anything, the detective started to follow the path. After walking for a couple minutes, with nothing new in sight, he stopped, feeling a light chill.

"Do you seek power…?"

He looked around, glaring when he saw nobody. "Who's there?"

He got no reply. Adachi seethed, before continuing his way down the path. More minutes passed before the voice appeared again.

"If it's power you desire, come and find me…"

"Who the hell are you?" He yelled, "What the hell are you talking about?"

Again, he received no answer. Shoving his hands in his pockets, Adachi continued down the path. This time a couple seconds passed before he found himself face-to-face with a door matching the blocks underneath him. He could feel the presence of someone behind it.

He glared, before opening the door, where the fog thickened considerably. If he got lost, he bet it'd be more fun trying to find his way out then it would be staying in Nowheresville.

**[Miracle]**

Souji knew it would take a miracle for Nanako to come back alive. Souji knew miracles never happened.

Standing over the cowering Namatame, the teen felt his insides boil as he stared at the man responsible for his cousin's death. He lifted the man up by his hospital gown, who gave terrified whimpers.

"Senpai, you're not really—"

"Shut up, Rise." He growled. "I'm putting the bastard in." he didn't feel a tinge of remorse or regret when he forcefully shoved the man into the TV.

Months passed, and the only family member that saw him off when he had to return home was his Uncle.

Miracles never happened.

**[Nightmare]**

Souji knew that one day Adachi was going to be his worst nightmare.

**[Over]**

He couldn't believe it. His fun was over, all thanks to a bunch of _teenagers._

Adachi grit his teeth as he sat on the floor in the electronics part of Junes. They didn't confiscate his gun. They were exhausted. He could grab one of them and dash back into the TV. He looked at their "leader", at Souji. He gave a short smirk.

Maybe his fun wouldn't be over yet.

**[Perfect]**

They'd always treated him like some sort of god, acting as if he was perfect. Souji stared at the 0 on his test.

No, he wasn't perfect, but he _was_ severely disappointed.

…Until he realized he'd gotten Yosuke's by mistake, and he was greeted with another 100 at the top of his test.

No, he wasn't perfect, he just liked getting perfect scores.

**[Quick]**

Dojima watched as Adachi passed by, being chased by a furious cat.

Why was it Adachi was fast at running away from pissed off animals, but when it came to getting him coffee, he was as slow as a snail?

**[Rain]**

"Souji, what're you doing?" Dojima questioned his nephew when he opened the door to their backyard, finding him sitting there in the rain.

"…Waiting."

The older man raised an eyebrow, before lightly tugging on Souji's arm, "Come on, you're getting soaked. If you get a cold, I'm still sending you to school."

"But I'm waiting…"

"Waiting for _what_, Souji?"

"…My umbrella… It flew away…"

"…Then get inside and dry off."

"I'm waiting…for my umbrella…"

Dojima growled, before forcing Souji to his feet, ready to drag him inside. The teen slipped out of his grip and ran. The detective called after him, before shaking his head and walking back inside, closing the door.

Curious, he checked the basket where they kept the umbrellas. Souji's was sitting in there, like always.

**[Smile]**

Souji smiled, and Adachi smiled in return.

It was all they could do not to rip each other's throat out.

**[Thorn]**

Adachi sighed, rubbing his temples as he sat himself on his couch.

Souji was beginning to be a real thorn in his side.

**[Under]**

"Souji, look out!" Souji looked behind his shoulder as Adachi lunged at him, the two rolling out of the way of a delivery truck that ignored the red light. When the duo stopped rolling, Adachi practically had Souji pinned under him.

"Are you okay, Souji-kun?"

The teen gave a shaky nod. Adachi's hands were so close to his neck. Why did that scare him more than almost getting run over?

**[Voice]**

"I art thou…and thou art I."

Souji gasped, gripping his head. He'd heard this voice before, he knew it, he had another headache then too. It was when he was watching that Midnight Channel.

"The time has come… Open thine eyes, and call forth what is within!"

His head stopped pounding in a second, and he stared at the card that sat in his hand. He quickly flipped it over, the image of a…demon… No, it was of a…

Souji grinned.

**[Whisper]**

Souji gagged, clawing at the boney fingers that wrapped tightly around his neck. He winced when Adachi's other hand slammed against the wall, close to his head. Adachi smirked, leaning closer to the teen, Souji continuing to struggle for air and freedom.

"Souji-kun…" he shivered at Adachi's voice. It sounded so sly, so…so _different_ from what he was used to hearing from the man. The detective placed his head right next to the suffocating teen's, his voice lowering to nothing more than a whisper, "You have no more lives left."

Then the detective snapped the boy's neck like a twig.

**[Xylophone]**

When he heard this odd, yet intriguing, sound, Souji couldn't help but wander downstairs, glad to find an excuse away from his homework. At the last step, he found Nanako staring wide-eyed in amazement as Adachi masterfully played a beautiful song on her small xylophone.

The teen immediately crawled back to his room and sat in a corner.

**[Yellow]**

Yellow had always been Souji's favourite colour. That is, until he met Yosuke's shadow.

The Shadow that terrified him the most though, had been Adachi's. His yellow eyes had been filled with such intensity and hatred aimed at him, he could feel those eyes staring through them no matter where he went.

Even though he was still thousands of miles away from Inaba, those glaring yellow eyes still followed him.

**[Zombie]**

"Wow, Adachi-san, you look like a zombie!" Souji gawked, trying to hide the laughter that threatened to spill out of him.

The detective pouted, "Thanks… I feel like one. Your uncle's got me running around like a gopher."

"But didn't you say you were his gopher when we first met? Or...wait, you said you were his slave! Isn't that part of the job?"

Adachi yawned, "…You're so funny, Souji-kun. You're so funny, I forgot to laugh."


	4. Chapter 4

Fools

**[Apology]**

"Adachi-san, I-I-I'm so sorry!" Souji stuttered, glancing at the detective's lunch he'd accidently knocked onto the floor.

Adachi cracked a smile, holding back a sigh, "It's okay, Souji-kun, no need to apologize, it wasn't your fault."

The teen looked up at the older man from where he and Adachi had started picking up the stray noodles, "No, it's not okay! After I help clean up, I'll buy you another lunch!"

"Don't waste your money on me, Souji-kun. Besides, my lunch break's going to be over soon."

Souji looked back at Adachi, guilt cornering every inch of his face before he looked back down, "I…I'm sorry…"

**[Blood]**

He was covered in blood. He was scared to open his eyes; there was so much blood that he could feel it dripping down his face. He whimpered at the lifeless body that lay sprawled on top of him. He didn't want to move. He didn't want to even be living at that moment.

He wasn't sure how a supposed-to-be short talk had escalated into a struggle for a gun, but he was sure of one thing:

He had killed Adachi. He had killed Adachi and was covered in his blood. He had killed Adachi, was covered in the detective's blood, and the teen could still feel the gun held tightly in his hand.

He was covered in blood. He was scared to open his eyes…

**[Courage]**

They called him their leader. They called him brave, strong, and courageous. Souji knew he wasn't any of them, all he knew was that his life and other lives were in danger once they entered the TV world. He knew he had to make sure nobody died.

He wasn't a leader, brave, or strong. He definitely wasn't courageous, he was always shaking whenever they went inside the TV. He was always shaking so hard he could barely keep a proper grip on his sword.

He just didn't want to see anyone else die and know it was because he couldn't save them in time. If that happened, he would let the guilt consume him.

He was a coward and nothing more.

**[Different]**

When Adachi unleashed his Persona, Souji's eyes couldn't have widened any more. His Izanagi card burned in his pocket as he stared at Adachi's own…Izanagi.

Other than colour, there was no difference.

He heard Rise scream something, he felt something rip and tear away at his skin and clothing, but he was too transfixed on the detective and his Persona to notice. Were they really…all that different?

**[Euphoria]**

He watched as his friends laughed and practically hopped through the streets. The fog was gone, the sky could be seen again, and they had caught the person responsible for all these events.

"Senpai, is something troubling you?" Naoto questioned, falling into step with him as they lagged behind the others, "You look awfully pale."

Souji gave her a smile, "No, I'm fine… Just exhausted." Which wasn't a lie, he was.

Naoto nodded in understanding, before Rise dragged her off.

He didn't want to ruin their happiness. He didn't want to tell them something felt…incomplete…like this wasn't the real ending of the mystery. He didn't want to drag them down by mentioning anything, and maybe he just still couldn't believe Adachi was the one behind everything. Maybe that was why he felt something was missing, he did think of Adachi as his friend after all…

But...that still wouldn't explain how him, Adachi, and Namatame got their powers to go into the TV.

Souji shook his head and watched as his friends continued to laugh as they continued making their way down the fog-free streets.

He wouldn't tell them, not yet. He'd act happy for their sakes.

**[Fashionable]**

"Hey, Souji-kun, what's with the popped collar?"

"I'm going to set a new trend in this town. Everyone will, and most already _should_ know that I am the most fashionable person in this place."

Adachi could only stare as the teen walked away…acting like he was on a cat-walk or something. The boy drove the detective in plenty of confusing loops. Fashionable or not, Souji would act straight as a stick one second, then as bent as a hula-hoop the next.

**[Gray]**

Souji hated the fog, especially when he was home alone and the fog was there to stay.

He didn't realize how gray a house could look.

**[Hell]**

Only after a few _hours_ of staying there Adachi knew this place was going to be a Hell on earth. It was such an absolute _bore_.

"Adachi, where's my coffee?"

Adachi growled. He wasn't a damn gopher, so why the hell was he being treated by one? But he put on a smile and brought the filled mug to his superior.

"Sorry about that, Dojima-san!"

He wanted to strangle this man already and leave this town. He'd only been there for a few hours, and it was already a boring Hell on earth.

**[Idol]**

"Hey, Souji-kun, how awesome is it being friends with an idol like Rise?" Adachi smiled, cupping his hands together as Souji sat down next to him.

The teenager smirked, "I'm the only idol in this town. Rise's nothing compared to me."

Adachi's smile fell, before he gave an exasperated sigh and shook his head, "You…sure are full of yourself."

**[Jacket]**

Adachi watched as Souji walked by in a leather jacket.

Adachi didn't say a word, because he knew he'd probably get an egotistical, weird response from the teen.

**[Kiss]**

"It's your turn, Adachi-san!" Nanako giggled, "Truth or dare?"

Adachi smiled, and, despite himself, said, "Dare."

Nanako giggled again, looking around the room for something to help inspire her. Her eyes landed on the TV that was on mute behind her. Adachi felt the corner of his lip twitch at what was on.

"Adachi-san, I dare you to…" she looked between her dad and cousin, "I dare you to kiss Big Bro!"

Adachi's eye twitched and he stared at the teen through the corner of his eye. Souji was burying his face in his hands. Adachi looked at Dojima through the corner of his eye, and it looked like the older man was having trouble deciding whether he should laugh or what. Then he looked back at Nanako, the girl staring at him with a tilted head and giant eyes.

Why did they keep picking dare?

**[Leave]**

Souji stared out the window of the train, feeling dizzy. It looked like the photo of his friends was slowly disappearing away in his hand. Wait...were they his friends? Did he even know these people? He squinted, the photo fading out of existence. He looked out the window, he just left…just left the city? Yeah…and now he was heading to Inaba…to live with his uncle and cousin for a year…

Yeah… So why did it feel like so much of his memory was missing? Like time was leaving him?

**[Minute]**

Dojima found out about the letter, arrested him and sent him to jail. Dojima interrogated him, but still didn't believe him when he told the truth. He was soon left alone, to stare at the TV when the Midnight Channel appeared, and he couldn't help but automatically detect his little cousin on the screen.

It had only taken a minute for everything to go downhill.

**[Noose]**

Souji glanced at the noose in the creepy room him, Yosuke, and Chie had stumbled upon after…falling through the TV.

He didn't notice anything else. All he could do was stare at it.

"Hey… Souji, come on, let's get out of here." Chie muttered, tugging on his sleeve.

He didn't move.

"Souji, come on!" he slowly turned to look at her, before following the two brunettes out of the room. He took one last glance at the noose before finally walking away.

**[Obedient]**

Adachi tapped the butt of his gun on Souji's forehead, the teen staring mindlessly at the ground, "Why did you come here again, Souji-kun?" he smirked.

"I…I came here t-to…" Souji gulped, "…to rat you out… Th..The letter I got… I…r-recognized your wr-writing…"

Adachi chuckled, "Yes, but it wasn't so smart to try to do that by coming to my apartment, alone, was it?"

Souji shut his eyes and shook his head. Usually he would think things through, but this time he was so confident that he could handle Adachi by himself. His judgement had been wrong. So very wrong. He was now tied to a chair, being taunted and teased by the detective. His cell phone had been confiscated, and the detective had made it clear that he wasn't going to get it back.

Adachi tapped his gun on Souji's head again, "Well, I'll tell you that you're smart in figuring out I sent the letter. Not so smart in coming here by yourself. "

"…D…Don't…r-rub it…in…" Souji whimpered.

Adachi laughed, "Oh, I'll rub it in all right." He bent down to Souji's level, "You're going to do as I say. You're going to do it without question. You're going to be obeying me like a dog."

Souji tried to close his eyes even tighter, despite how impossible it was.

"First step of your obedience: Look at me…" the teen felt the gun slide to his temple, "…or I'll place a bullet in your head."

Souji slowly opened his eyes, tears stinging the corners. He was met with a terrifying grin.

"Good. Now, for your second step…"

**[Pencil]**

Souji stared at the pencil lying on his empty desk. He'd finished the midterms first, like always. He wished they'd give him another piece of paper so he could do something instead of sit there, bored.

He'd rather be at the police department, fetching his uncle a cup of coffee instead.

**[Queasy]**

Souji stared at the blank table he was sitting at. He should have put his hand in the TV to show Dojima he was telling the truth…but then he'd most definitely freak Nanako out… and maybe Dojima would even think it was just some prank he was pulling.

Souji sighed, before turning to the TV in his cell. His eyes grew wide and he felt the blood swim away from his face. Nanako was on the Midnight Channel.

He felt like someone just punched him in the gut. Multiple times. With spikes on their gloves.

**[Real]**

"Souji, dude, you can't be serious!" Yosuke yelled, grabbing the steel-haired teen's shoulders, "You're kidding, right?"

Souji shivered, looking to the ground.

"Senpai, if there's something going on—"

"There's nothing going on, Naoto!" he spat, shaking, "I…I-I just…th-think we s-should…stop going in…the TV…"

"What's your reason, partner?" Yosuke shook Souji like a rag-doll, "What's your reason for suddenly deciding we shouldn't go in the TV anymore? What if somebody else gets kidnapped? Are you just going to let them DIE?"

Souji flinched, shutting his eyes, "…Y…Yes."

He yelped when he was pushed to the ground, Yosuke walking off in fury, the rest of the investigation team following him in confusion.

Souji watched as they left and he slowly curled himself into a ball, sobbing into his knees. He jumped when he felt his new phone ring in his pocket, and he shakily took it out, "H-H-Hello…?" he stammered, despite knowing who would be on the other end.

"Judging by your greeting, I'm guessing you did what I told you to."

Souji tried to hold back his sobs, only to fail.

"And if I can't stop someone from going into the TV, you _will not_ be joining your team to save them, correct?"

"C-c-c-correct…"

Adachi chuckled, "Good. Good. You learn fast… O-Oh, sorry, Dojima-san! What was that?" Then the detective hung up.

Souji let the phone fall from his shaking hand and slam against the school's roof. He shook his head and hugged himself. He couldn't believe this was real…

**[Snow]**

He used to like snow, but now with the fog, he hated it. It looked like a murky green instead of its beautiful white.

And now, red mingled with it. Or…should he say black.

The distorted colours had his head spinning. Or maybe it was the fact he was losing blood that was making his head spin. He used to like snow, but now it was a murky green coloured in his distorted black blood.

**[Trust]**

"Adachi-san… I trust you."

"Huh? Trust me with what, Souji-kun?"

"The case. I trust you to solve it."

The detective blushed, "R-Really? W-Well, don't worry! I'll catch the criminal that did this!"

**[Unlock]**

"Dojima-san, there you a—w-why is Souji-kun handcuffed?"

"Adachi, take him to a cell." The older detective commanded, shoving the teen at Adachi and throwing him the keys to his cuffs, "I'm gonna grab a coffee that _won't_ arrive cold." And he quickly walked away as Adachi awkwardly started leading Souji to a cell.

"W-What's this about, Souji-kun?"

"…You'll figure out once we get to the cell… And Uncle comes to interrogate me…"

Adachi frowned, before they finally got to a free cell, the detective opening the door and letting the teenager in first. When they were inside, he grabbed the keys Dojima had thrown at him and unlocked Souji's handcuffs. Souji gave a quiet thank you, and sat down, waiting for his uncle.

There was a TV in here… He could prove he could enter the TV without scaring Nanako, and he couldn't do anything to make it so Dojima thought it was some sort of prank. Adachi would be watching, too, so he'd know nothing happened to the TV.

But Souji knew nothing would convince his uncle. He might as well be locked in handcuffs forever, since Dojima would never believe him no matter what he did.

**[Voiceless]**

When Adachi was ranting and raving and throwing a tantrum in Yamano's TV realm, Souji couldn't say a word. The others were interrupting him, which seemed to make him angrier.

He couldn't say a thing. He was too scared, too shocked, and still in denial. He was the one who realized Adachi was the one who had committed the murders, yes, but… He'd thought Adachi was his friend… Realizing he wasn't… It just…left him absolutely speechless.

**[Water]**

When Chie and Yukiko pushed him and Yosuke into the water, Souji realized just how close he was to landing on a giant boulder. He wondered what they would have done if that did happen, and then he fell into the river, unconscious?

When Chie, Yukiko, Rise, and Naoto started throwing small hot-spring tubs at them that seemed endless, Souji wondered what they would have done if they cracked someone's skull and they fell in the springs, bleeding and unconscious?

**[Xenophobe]**

Adachi wasn't one for new things. He hated changing schools, hated growing up, hated getting a job, and absolutely completely detested it when he was transferred to this boring-ass town. But, when he found out about his power, it was something new he actually liked.

**[You]**

"Souji-kun, you can't hide from me."

He shivered into a ball, clutching his ears, trying to keep quiet while trying to block the detective out. He didn't want to listen to him anymore. He didn't want to be his obedient little servant anymore. Nanako was dead. Nanako was _dead_ because she was the next victim and Yosuke and everyone else couldn't save her and had to be sent to the hospital in critical condition and Nanako was _dead_.

"Souji-kun, you don't want to make me mad, do you?"

He clutched his ears even tighter. He didn't want to hear this. He didn't want to hear this he did not he did not _he did not._

"Souji-kun, I found you." The teenager opened his eyes in a panic, gun aimed at his forehead, Adachi smiling.

**[Zone]**

The crumbling distorted world of Magatsu Inaba lay under his feet. Souji glanced around. The detective had dragged him here and left him at the entrance while he teleported away.

He was so scared.

Adachi had total control. Souji had absolutely none. He didn't have a weapon in his hands and Adachi had somehow managed to make all his Personas disappear.

He was in Adachi's zone now, and there was no way out.

* * *

**Sneakers:** HOLY CRAP AN AUTHOR'S NOTE...THING...er...majig. 8I  
ANYWAY. The umbrella thing, yeah Imma make that into a little 5-or-so chapter story. I'll make the Adachi and Dojima bits longer and stuff...so...LOOK OUT FOR IT...whenever I get writing the other chapters. I got the third down just...have to rewrite Adachi's and Dojima's...but mainly after I finish Delayed Player haha...ha...ha. 8D;;  
ANY-ANYWAY I'm also sort of running out of words for X and Z and google may help but sometimes the words are just so...randomly random and fake looking...I don't wanna use em. SO I may chop out X and Z altogether, or I might just reuse the same word a lot a lot a lot a lot...lot... Yeah.  
SO. Thanks for the reviews guys, I love em, they make me happy. Hooray. :'D


	5. Chapter 5

Fools

**[Almond]**

Adachi watched as Souji popped chocolate-covered almonds in his mouth. That was the only thing the teen had eaten at the party all night.

"Hey, Souji-kun, why don't you try something else? The chips and dip are amazing." he suggested, walking over to the counter.

Souji smiled, "I'm fine with my chocolate." He popped another one in his mouth.

Adachi frowned, "Aren't you scared you'll get sick? Or fat?"

The teen shrugged, grabbed five more chocolate almonds and popped them in his mouth.

**[Baby]**

Nanako blinked as she watched the special on TV. She curiously turned to Souji, who looked up from his book nearly immediately, waiting for the upcoming question.

"Big Bro, you were a baby once, right?"

The teen nodded, "So were you."

Nanako pondered over that fact, before her curious stare returned, "Does that mean we're both Jesus?"

Souji didn't think he'd ever laughed harder.

**[Carols]**

"Big Bro, Big Bro, there's carollers outside! Come on, let's listen!" Nanako tugged desperately on her cousin's shirt, who forced a grin.

He hated carollers.

**[Drink]**

"Dojima-san, are—are you sure you should be drinking so much?" Adachi questioned as the older man swayed back and forth.

"Ish… Ish the holi—holidays… D-Drink up!" he shoved the half-empty bottle towards the younger detective.

"But… I'll probably be the one to drive you home… I'll need to be sob…er…" Adachi gulped at the devilish glare the older man gave him.

"Drink. Up."

**[Eggnog]**

"You've never had eggnog, Adachi-san?"

"Nope."

"I have to get you to try it one time! It's so good!"

Adachi smirked, "We'll see about that."

**[Fairy]**

"Big Bro, can you help me put the fairy on top of the tree?"

Souji smiled and lifted the young girl up, Nanako gleefully placing the ornament at the top of the tree.

Neither him nor Dojima had the heart to tell her it was an angel whose halo had accidently been cut off.

**[Good]**

"I've been a good girl, right, Big Bro?"

"Of course."

"That means I'll get a lot of presents, right?"

"Of course."

The giant smile on Nanako's face was all Souji needed to make his Christmas.

**[Holiday]**

"So, Nanako-chan, is this your favourite holiday?" Adachi inquired as he watched the girl stare intently at the presents placed under the tree. She quickly looked at him and nodded.

"Why's it your favourite?"

The girl's eyes lit up and she got to her feet, waving her arms around for emphasis, "Because I get a loooot of presents! And… And so do my friends! Everybody gets lots of presents, and everybody's happy because Santa's nice!"

"But you get lots of candy on Halloween, don't you?" Adachi watched as Nanako pondered over this fact.

"Yeah…" she faltered, "But then I get sick!"

"And what about your birthday? You get presents then, too! And cake!"

"…You're right!" Nanako faltered again, "But then it's just me that gets presents! I like Christmas better! Everybody gets presents!"

**[Ill]**

"Adachi-san, are you okay?" Souji examined the older man curiously, who returned the gesture with an exasperated one.

"I am so sick of the holidays."

**[Jolly]**

"For someone wearing a Santa hat, you sure don't seem that jolly, Dojima-san." Adachi smirked, peering at his superior who was slumped at his desk, piles of paper spread around.

"It itches." The man grumbled, glaring at Adachi through the corner of his eye.

"Then why're you wearing it?"

"If I don't, I'm apparently fired."

"…I can see why you're not jolly."

"Shut up, Adachi."

**[King]**

"Adachi-san, thanks for helping me pick up some gifts." Souji grinned as the placed the last bag in the back of the older man's car. Adachi smiled,

"Not a problem, Souji-kun! But damn, you sure did buy a lot of expensive stuff! Are you related to a king or something?"

Souji laughed, "No! This was all my money I earned here from part-time jobs."

"…Okay, you yourself are a king. I get it."

**[Love]**

"Big Bro, Adachi-san, is it true that if you kiss somebody on Christmas, you automatically fall in love and live happily ever after?"

The men didn't know how to reply to that.

**[Mistletoe]**

Nanako giggled and Souji smiled, the two stopping from making paper snowflakes.

Adachi blinked, before both he and Dojima looked up, mistletoe hanging from the ceiling right above them.

Both men stared at it before looking at each other. Dojima glared.

"No."

"Daaad, you have to!" Nanako chimed in, frowning, "You have to! And it has to be on the lips, like in the movies!"

Adachi hesitantly chuckled, saying the first excuse that came to mind, "I… Um… I actually don't feel that well, Nanako-chan, a-and I wouldn't want to get your dad sick!"

The girl stared and Adachi thought she would let them off the hook… until tears started to well up in her giant eyes.

"B-But—" the girl stopped stammering, her face lighting up once Souji leaned over and whispered something in her ear. She giggled again, rosy blush on her cheeks, "Okay! That works!"

Souji smiled and placed his unfinished paper snowflakes and scissors on the table before he got up and headed towards where the older men were standing. The teen pushed Dojima away, who sighed in relief and sat on the couch. Adachi barely had time to react before Souji gripped his shoulders and quickly pecked him on the lips.

Nanako cheered and Souji's smile never left his face.

"That wasn't so bad, now was it?" he laughed then headed back to his table to resume making paper snowflakes with his cousin.

Adachi cocked a crooked grin, before glaring up at the mistletoe.

**[Naughty]**

"Dad, Big Bro, Adachi-san, have you been naughty or nice?"

The men all looked at the young girl, staring at them with the widest, most curious eyes imaginable.

"…Nice."

They all lied.

**[Open]**

Souji watched as his cousin squirmed where she was sitting, staring intently at the presents on the tree. He knew there would be more put under it tomorrow, Dojima had them stowed away in the attic.

"You can't open them until tomorrow."

Nanako turned to look at him and pouted, "I know!"

Souji laughed as she turned back to the gifts.

**[Present]**

"Souji-kun, what are you doing here?"

The teen smiled, taking an envelope out of his pocket before handing it to the detective, "I wanted to give you this. No opening it until Christmas, though!"

Adachi stared and hesitantly took the gift, "I don't have anything for you…"

Souji laughed, "That's all right, I don't need anything! I like giving presents more than I do receiving them anyway. Merry Christmas, Adachi-san, I hope you like it once you can open it."

**[Quilt]**

Souji smiled. He and Nanako were curled up on the couch, covered in a quilt Souji brought from home. His mom had hand-stitched it for him when he was young, before she had a job. It had a square for every holiday, as well as any memories she could put in on there.

"Big Bro…?"

"Mm?"

"Can we make a quilt like this one day?"

"Of course."

**[Run]**

"Adachi-san, I wouldn't run—" Souji flinched when he saw the detective crash to the ground, his groceries landing all over the place.

**[Slip]**

Souji stared, waiting for the signal to let him walk. There was barely any traffic, he could probably walk across the road and nobody would really give a damn, but he wouldn't risk it. He slowly started to walk on the spot, trying to get his frozen feet warm. His boots had been soaked the other day, and still hadn't dried by the time he got up, so he'd just had to slip on his normal shoes and head outside.

Sometimes, he really hated winter.

He shoved his hands in his coat pockets, his gloved fingers lightly touching the last little gift he'd bought for Nanako and a small smile graced his lips. He was sure she'd love it. And if she didn't, all he'd have to say was that it was from Junes and she automatically would.

The teen's steely eyes lit up once he saw the red hand change to a walking man, and Souji started to make his way across the road. He made it about three steps before his foot slid out from underneath him and he fell, the back of his head hitting the icy ground as his other ankle twisted, landing underneath him.

"Son of a bitch…" he muttered, fighting back the tears that shot in his eyes. He struggled to lift himself up, only managing to get in a sitting position before the world spun before him and faded to black before popping back in colour. He rubbed the back of his head and looked at his fingers. There wasn't any blood, and he sighed in relief until he looked at his ankle. If his fall was somehow taped, he didn't want to see it. He didn't want to know _how_ his ankle ended up like that.

Deciding he should try to get back up by himself, since anybody driving by ignored him completely, Souji shakily tried to get to his feet, only for his injured ankle to cause him to fall again. The teen growled before he looked up at the icy hill-road in front of him. The light was green. A white SUV was heading down the hill towards him.

It took him only a couple of seconds before he realized that was his uncle's SUV.

He tried to get back on his feet, but his legs wouldn't move this time. The world was growing fuzzy from his blow to the head, and he could only watch as the SUV tried to brake and swerve to avoid him, but the icy road stopped him from doing so, and the vehicle rammed into the teen.

From where he was thrown after the impact, Souji watched as the vehicle slammed into a pole before the world finally dimmed out of existence.

**[Taste]**

"Well, Adachi-san, how'd you like it?" Souji peered in closer to the adult, who'd just finished taking a sip of eggnog.

Adachi mused, before flatly stating, "It was gross."

**[Untie]**

"Here, Nanako, at my house I get to open one gift on Christmas Eve. I'll let you open one of the gifts I got for you."

Souji watched with joy as his cousin's face lit up brighter than the lights on the tree as she grabbed the bag from his hands. A giant grin spread on his face as she untied the bow on the bag, revealing the gift. The teen quickly found himself in a crushing hug.

"Thank you, Big Bro! I love it!"

**[Vermillion]**

"…That… Please tell me that wasn't Souji…"

Adachi pushed the airbag down and looked at the older man, who looked as pale as the snow outside.

"I… I think it was, sir…" the younger detective admitted as he watched his superior punch down the airbag before wincing as he grabbed his cell phone.

"What the hell are you waiting for? Can't you see I'm stuck? Go see if he's okay!" Adachi nodded, fumbling to unbuckle his seatbelt before he hopped out of the car. The world spun in a dizzy stupor, but the detective ignored it as best as he could and made his way towards the injured teen. He kneeled down and carefully flipped Souji onto his back before he checked for a pulse.

Adachi frowned. All he could feel was his own racing heart that seemed engulf all feeling in his body. Deciding that was no use, he unzipped the teen's jacket and lowered his ear to his chest, eyebrows stitching together. He could tell Souji was breathing, but his breaths were harsh and shallow and his heart was beating extremely slowly. Lifting himself back up, Adachi paled as he saw blood starting to pool out of the teen's mouth.

"Best time of the year, huh?" the older man muttered, before he started to lightly pat the injured boy's face. "Souji-kun! Souji-kun, if you can hear me, move your fingers!"

There wasn't a response.

"Souji-kun, come on! Wake up!"

Adachi leaned against the boy's chest again to see if he was still alive. He was.

"Souji-kun, don't disappoint Nanako-chan! Don't die on her two days before Christmas!"

The teen wasn't moving an inch.

By the time paramedics started to arrive, the sun had started to set. Souji hadn't faded from existence completely, but there were still no signs of him waking up.

When Souji, Dojima and Adachi were carted away in ambulances (he said he was fine, but they wanted to make sure), the last thing the young detective saw was the bright red sky before his eyes turned to Souji's blood in the snow, and then the ambulance doors shut.

**[Why]**

Adachi jumped at Souji's sudden entrance, which was slamming his hands on the desk. The teen had shades on, as well as Nanako who was standing next to him, trying to hold her laughter.

"All right, bub," Souji started, pointing accusingly at the detective, "We've got questions, and you've got answers. Tell us, and we'll make this easy."

"Uh… O-Okay…?" Adachi was very confused.

"Why does Santa wear red?" Adachi wondered how Souji managed to say that with the most threatening voice possible.

"Because… Because he wanted to match Rudolph's nose?"

Souji took a couple of seconds before looking at Nanako, who nodded in acceptance, and then he turned back to the detective, "Why is Santa fat?"

"Because he eats cookies at every house."

"Why does Santa like cookies?"

"Because cookies are delicious?"

"Why does Santa give coal to kids who are naughty? Why doesn't he give them absolutely nothing?"

"Because Santa's too nice to not give anything to children. Besides, you can…probably still have fun with coal somehow."

"Why does Santa say 'ho ho ho' instead of actually laughing?"

Adachi blinked, before raising an eyebrow, "Why are you even asking me this?"

"Why not?"

**[Xmas]**

"Hey, Adachi-san…"

"Yeah, what is it, Souji-kun?"

"Do you know how they came up with 'Xmas'?"

The detective blinked, "…I honestly have no idea."

**[You're…]**

Souji hadn't stirred. It was Christmas day and Nanako had herself locked in her room, crying her eyes out. She hadn't left since she heard the news about her cousin. Adachi had tried to help get her out, to get her to eat something, but Dojima finally told him to go home.

Adachi sighed as he entered his apartment, kicking off his shoes in discontent before he wandered into the living room.

He stared at the envelope Souji had given him a couple of days ago, and he curiously picked it up. He sat himself on his couch before he ripped it open and took out the card, a slip of paper landing on his lap when he opened the card.

There wasn't any computer text inside the card, just a handwritten note from the comatose teenager.

"_You need this more than I do, Adachi-san. I hope you have a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year! I'm glad I got to know you! :)_

_-Souji Seta._"

Adachi blinked and placed the card on the table before grabbing the paper on his leg. It was a cheque…for _fifty million yen._

The detective didn't notice how long he sat there, staring blankly at the paper in his hand. He hadn't even realized tears started to fall down his face.

"Souji-kun…" he found himself muttering, putting the cheque down before holding his head in his hands, "You… You're an _idiot_…"

**[Zero]**

They had said there was a very, very, very small chance of him ever waking up. After awhile, they just started saying there was no chance at all, that he would remain a vegetable the rest of his life.

But here they were, three years later, sitting in that same hospital room as they had visited so many times before, hoping, and waiting for something, anything.

Here they were, watching as Souji kicked that zero percent chance of him waking up to the curb as his eyes opened.

The teen looked around, dazed, before his eyes landed on familiar faces. The weakest, but most heartfelt smile graced his lips.

"Merry Christmas."

* * *

**Sneakers:** I love how I still have depressing stuff in here. I like depressing stuff. I'm not that good with happy. I try, but I just…blaaah. XD

ANYWAY, I hope everyone has/had an awesome Christmas/Holidays! And Happy New Year, guys! I'll try to get that next Delayed Player chapter up ASAP! I'm trying, I really am, it just likes eating me alive, that's all. Yaaay. :D

Oh, and uh, in case you couldn't tell, this all happens as if personas never existed and stuff… Yeah. Whoo. Fun. XD  
And well it just turned into Christmas day for me so I'm really tired so hopefully… A lot of this makes sense.  
I hope it does.  
I bet it won't.  
Well.

Again.  
Merry Christmas/Happy Holidays & Happy New Year! :D


	6. Chapter 6

Fools

**[Air]**

"Adachi-san…"

The detective blinked, looking at the teenager. He didn't need to reply, he knew the boy would say what he wanted.

"Have you ever wanted to fly? To feel the breeze kiss your cheeks?"

"I think we all—"

"To feel the wind beneath you shake as you land on the earth, dead?"

The boy's eyes looked as light as the air.

**[Beg]**

"Adachi, for the love of god, you're killing him! Stop this!"

"Big Bro!"

Souji looked up at his uncle and cousin, who were both tightly strapped to chairs. Despite his light-headedness, despite the pain, despite the broken bones, despite the split in his head causing blood to swarm down his face, and despite the fact that he was still getting beat to death, he flashed his relatives as much of a reassuring smile as he could. It didn't last long, a swift, devastating kick to head quickly knocked him unconscious.

Nanako screamed and sobbed, shutting her eyes. Dojima's mind went blank with rage.

Adachi chuckled, lifting the inanimate teen by the neck, "Oh, don't worry, he's not dead. I'm not close to being finished with him yet."

Dojima snarled, "What the hell do I have to do to get you to fucking stop this?"

Adachi laughed, before throwing Souji's limp body close to his other hostages' feet. Even if the boy woke up, both his arms and hands were broken. He wouldn't be able to tear through the bonds that kept his family unable to move.

The detective left the room humming as Dojima continued to yell and plead.

**[Closed]**

His eyes were closed, but he wasn't sleeping. He was listening, listening very closely to the man beside him who continued to flick the channels of the TV.

He slowly made himself fall over. He'd practiced so much; the detective wouldn't be able to tell he was actually awake. His head landed on the older man's shoulder. He listened very closely.

"Fuckin' brat…"

**[Destroy]**

"Yo, hey, Partner, that's enough!"

"Senpai, stop!"

He swung his bat. He didn't care that the man was unconscious. He was going to kill him. He was going to _kill_ him.

"Souji!"

It took every single one of his friends to stop him from murdering Adachi in cold blood. He deserved it, though. That man destroyed his life.

**[Ego]**

"Souji-kun, sometimes I wonder about you…" Adachi sighed after hearing the teen rant about how absolutely amazing he was.

The teen blinked, "Huh? What? Why? Do you not think I'm amazing, Adachi-san?"

"…Your ego certainly is."

**[Fire]**

The rooms were filling themselves with flames within minutes, the fire etching and slithering along the walls and floors in mad delight. She could hear him screaming in utter agony downstairs, and she slammed her tiny fists against her bedroom door in frustration and fear. She was locked in; something outside had blocked her door. The flames and smoke hadn't been able to encase her room yet.

"Big Bro!" she screamed. He was still yelling in absolute anguish. She couldn't stop the tears that streamed down her face from the strangled cries of her cousin. Sliding to the ground, Nanako backed away from the door, covering her ears. Maybe if she didn't hear him, he'd be okay… Maybe if she didn't hear him, he'd be okay… Maybe if she didn't hear him, he'd be okay. Maybe if she didn't hear him, he'd be okay. Maybe if she didn't hear him, he'd be okay. Maybe if she didn't hear him, he'd be _dead_.

The girl screeched at the thought and buried her head in her knees. His screams had dulled… His screams ceased to exist… The walls around her slowly started to groan in protest at the fire's stubbornness. She knew that same fire was downstairs, dancing on her cousin's lifeless body…

She quaked, trembling herself into a tight ball. If only her tears had been enough to stop the fire…

**[Glare]**

Adachi and Souji blinked. They weren't quite sure what happened, but they found themselves staring at a…glaring contest between Dojima and Kanji.

"I bet you 500 yen that Dojima-san loses."

"You're on."

**[Heart]**

"Big Bro, Adachi-san, if you had to pick the colour of your heart to reflect who you are, what would you pick?"

"Green."

"Black."

The detective and young girl stared at Souji, who looked right back, confused.

"What? It was the first thing that popped in my head."

**[Intercept]**

"Souji-kun, stop!" Adachi had reached the top of the building first. Dojima would be there any second.

The teen looked over his shoulder from the ledge he stood on, "Why?"

"You're still young! You have your whole life ahead of you!"

Souji turned around, but still remained perched on the ledge. A discontent sneer covered his face, "No, I don't. My parents decided my future for me."

"You don't—"

"Want to stop me? Become Superman and catch me, then."

Adachi watched in horror as the teen leaned backwards, and then fell to the ground stories below.

**[Joker]**

"Hey, Adachi-san, if you could be any superhero or super villain, which would it be?"

"Uh… I think I'd like to be Superman. What about you?"

"The Joker."

"…W-Why?"

"I could make everyone smile."

"…But he makes everyone smile by poisoning them or whatever, right?"

"…Well, then I'd be a nice Joker!"

"…Doesn't that defeat the purpose of the question?"

**[Killer]**

"S-Souji-kun… What… What are you wearing?" Adachi was mortified.

"This was what I had to wear during the cross-dressing pageant during the Culture Festival at school. I felt like wearing it around town to show everyone my killer looks!" Souji proudly struck a pose.

Killer indeed, Adachi's train of thought died on the spot trying to figure out that boy's mind.

**[Lambaste]**

"Don't worry; we'll get out of here… I promise…"

How many times had that promise been made?

The teen didn't look at his uncle. He couldn't see anyway. He wasn't sure when, but he had lost his vision during one of the previous assaults Adachi had laid on him. Souji shivered at that day's beating. The detective had brought more than just his fists and shoes; he'd also brought a whip. Dojima had been struck first for practice before he moved onto Souji.

Even though it'd been hours after the beating, Souji's whole body continued to pulse in utter agony. He was grateful his sight went missing; he didn't want to see his cousin cry, he didn't want to see Adachi's psychopathic smile, and he didn't want to witness what his broken-beyond-repair body now looked like. He knew he'd become a hideous mess covered in bruises, scars, blood, broken limbs, swollen limbs, and everything else that he could imagine. He knew he'd never be able to walk again if he made it out alive.

"Souji, say something, I—" Dojima was cut short at the door slamming open. Souji could _hear_ the malicious grin that graced Adachi's face.

Before the young detective had a chance to say something, Souji broke down crying.

"Kill me! Please, just kill me!"

The whip slashing his cheek was his answer.

'No.'

**[Muffins]**

"Adachi-san, I baked you and Uncle some muffins!"

The detective peered into the basket, an array of different kinds of muffins lying inside.

"…You made these?"

"Yep. From scratch."

"…Why?"

"I thought you and Uncle could use a break from those vending machine snacks… And Nanako wanted some muffins, but she said the ones at Junes were too expensive, so I decided to make some… a-and then I got a little carried away."

"…How many did you make?"

"Over one hundred."

**[Night]**

Souji hated working at the hospital. He wouldn't have minded if it was in the morning, but it was just creepy as all sin during the night. Sayoko didn't help.

…It especially didn't help when he saw Adachi with the creepiest expression on his face whenever he was washing the windows.

**[Orange]**

"Hey, Souji, I've only ever seen you wear black or neutral colours. Why not try something…orange or…red or…colourful?"

"Orange is Yosuke's and Rise's thing."

"…R-Red?"

"Yukiko's."

"Green?"

"Chie's."

"…Why won't you wear colours?"

"If I do, my beautiful eyes don't stand out as much!"

"…Of course."

**[Pale]**

Adachi hummed, heading down the hallway to his superior's office, coffee in hand. Knocking on the doorframe, he jumped in, bright smile on his face,

"Hey, Dojima-san, I got you…your…coffee…" the young detective froze at the sight of the older man shaking, white as a sheet, phone barely staying in his trembling fingers. He quickly rushed over, placing the coffee on the table before lightly grabbing Dojima's shoulders.

Before he could ask what was wrong, Dojima shakily explained, "My house… Th-There… was a fire."

Adachi felt the blood flush away from his face, "A… Are Nanako-chan and So—"

"I don't know…"

Adachi faltered, finding himself looking at the ground, "Sh-Should we… Should we go…?"

Dojima nodded; his eyes distant and unfocused.

The car ride was silent.

**[Quiet]**

It had been a calm, peaceful, quiet evening after Adachi choked the life out of Souji.

**[Rummage]**

Adachi sighed in frustration, pushing and throwing stuff out of his desk drawers.

"Adachi, what the hell are you doing?"

"I can't find my pencil…"

"…You mean the one stuck in your hair?"

"…Uh… Y-Yeah… That one."

**[Sarcasm]**

Souji was frantic. The detective could be home at any time, and he hadn't found what he was looking for. Breaking and entering wasn't his smartest idea. No, no it wasn't. He could have just asked Adachi to write something down, but the nagging voice in the back of his head told him this was a better idea. Yeah! Of course it was!

Souji's fingers crept along everything. His eyes hadn't adjusted to the darkness yet. He could barely see his hands, let alone any piece of paper with writing on it. But he needed it! He needed it to prove Adachi was the killer! He needed the evidence!

Souji froze when the lights clicked on. His body turned to ice when he felt a gun touch the back of his head.

This was _definitely_ the better plan, of course.

**[Tears]**

Nanako was sitting in the back of an ambulance, conscious with an oxygen mask on her face. At the sight, Dojima jumped out of his car and sprinted to his daughter, seemingly unharmed despite the fact the vehicle was still moving. Adachi panicked, quickly unbuckling his seatbelt before flailing to get to the driver's side and stop the car safely. There didn't need to be any more accidents today…

Clobbering out of the now unmoving vehicle, Adachi stared at what was left of the Dojima residence. Stubborn flames still taunted and teased the firefighters as they desperately tried to put them out. Half of the house had caved in on itself. It had just started to reach Nanako's room by the time help arrived.

Adachi turned to look at the older detective, who was holding, consoling, and crying with his petrified daughter. He assumed Souji hadn't been found, as an ambulance sat next to Nanako's, the paramedics waiting for their chance. He slowly glanced back at the ruined house, blinking in confusion when he thought he saw something move. Curious, he watched that spot as he slowly edged closer.

He squinted. Nothing seemed to move… But then he saw it: a hand twitching, buried under piles of rubble and debris. Adachi bolted, ignoring the calls that came from the police and firemen, and it felt like time froze as he reached the spot next to the hand. He scraped his knees, but he didn't care. His hands were acquiring splinters and cuts thanks to the burned and broken wood, but he didn't care, he continued to rip it away from that spot. Someone had started helping him, but they weren't important.

Adachi held back the urge to cry at the sight of a severely burned Souji. There was barely any life left in the boy's faded eyes.

Carefully, he tried to get the rest of the teen out of the rubble, only resulting in a gurgled scream as his skin was wiped clean off his bones when Adachi tried to grab him. The young detective let go immediately, tears spilling down his cheeks as he showered the boy with apologies.

"N…ana…k…ko?" the tears fell even harder at Souji's struggles to speak.

Adachi was barely able to crack a smile, "S-She's okay, Souji-kun! She's j-just fine! Don't worry!" Souji looked at him wearily, before his eyes shut, head falling back to the ground.

He was dead.

Adachi found himself staring at the boy's flesh that stuck to his hands, and he bawled. He didn't notice it when someone dragged him away.

Souji died with a smile on his face.

**[Unfair]**

The fire hadn't been an accident; Adachi and Dojima knew that immediately. Souji was too careful to allow something like that to ever happen. It didn't take long for them to find the culprits either; they'd been bragging about it to their other friends in town.

Adachi had been the one to interrogate the teens, until he was forced to leave after knocking one unconscious. Dojima took a month of paid vacation off, but couldn't find anywhere else to live but in the same run-down apartment as Adachi.

Once they got to court, the teens said the fire wasn't their fault. They had kept their mouths shut during the interrogation as well. They ended up leaving without a guilty verdict, due to an apparent lack of evidence. Adachi had been escorted out of the first trial after his protests and screams and wasn't allowed to return. Dojima never went.

Souji's parents had to send money to pay for the funeral, but they couldn't make it themselves as a blizzard hit the area, cancelling their flight.

At the funeral, nobody spoke except for the priest. Nobody had tears left to cry.

"Adachi-san?" Nanako didn't look at the man. Dojima had fallen asleep on the couch hours ago. "Is… Is Big Bro with Mom?"

Adachi gulped, before creating the smallest smile in the world, "Y-Yeah… He's… He's with her in heaven."

"…But I want them back here…"

It started to rain.

**[Villain]**

Adachi twisted Souji's head up. There was no cry of agony, no sign of life at all, "Oh, what a shame, he's dead." The man frowned, before letting the boy's head fall, "Pity, I thought he'd last longer than that."

Dojima screamed at him. Nanako was crying.

"You're next, _Dojima-san_~." He purred before turning on his heel and skipping out the door, slamming it shut. Hopping up the stairs, he paused at the sight of odd lights overhead. The young detective snarled, agitatedly shoving his hands in his pockets. How could they have found this place?

"Tohru Adachi, come out with your hands up! We know you're in here!"

His glare grew as he backed down the steps. There wasn't anywhere he could go; this was the lowest place in the dungeon. He looked around, smiling after he barely caught sight of the crevice in the back of a corner wall. Quickly and quietly, he dashed over and managed to squeeze himself in with little difficulty. Holding his breath and closing his eyes, he waited as he heard the footsteps grow louder.

"I repeat: Come out with your hands up!" the lead officer was standing right in front of him. Adachi smirked.

Dojima was yelling at them for help. Most of the troops went into the room; the couple that remained outside gave a brief look around. They didn't see him.

Adachi's smirk grew wider… until he found himself pulled out and on the ground, handcuffs quickly placed tightly around his wrists. He quickly put his smirk back on as the cops stared at him in absolute disgust.

His fun wouldn't end with him just getting arrested.

**[Weird]**

"Souji-kun, have I ever told you you're…weird?"

"Weird? Me? Hah! You must be so amazed by my extreme amounts of awesomeness and splendour that your brain has confused itself!"

"…You… You think that."

**[X]**

"Hey, Souji-kun, what's wrong?"

The teen looked up at the curious detective and sniffed, before handing him a piece of paper, "Look!"

Adachi grabbed the paper and stared at it curiously. There was a 99% on the top of the paper.

"Souji-kun, this mark is amazing!"

"No! It's a stupid, ugly mark! Look!" the boy hopped up and pointed at a question with an x, "This little shit question screwed my perfect test score record! I've been getting perfect scores since I was six!"

Adachi could only stare, absolutely dumbfounded.

**[Yes]**

"Adachi-san!" the detective turned around, nearly falling over as Souji gripped him in a running hug.

"Woah! Wh-What is it, Souji-kun?"

The teen looked up from where he'd buried his face in Adachi's shirt. His eyes were glossy with tears, a tint of pink on his cheeks, "A-Adachi-san… will you… will you marry me?"

"…Excuse me?"

"Aw, you're no fun! You're supposed to say 'yes' like everyone else did when I asked… Except for Kanji… And Yosuke… And Uncle… And Mr. Morooka.."

**[Zzz]**

"Dad, Dad, go get the camera!"

"Why, what's the occasion?"

"Just hurry!"

Dojima raised an eyebrow, before getting the camera at his daughter's request. When he returned to the living room, he couldn't help but smirk at the sight on the couch.

"Well, ain't that cute."

"That's why I wanted you to take a picture!"

The man laughed, and readied the camera, capturing the moment. Adachi and Souji had fallen asleep on the couch, Souji's head resting on Adachi's chest. They were completely oblivious to the world around them.


	7. Chapter 7

Fools

**[Answer]**

"Souji, where were you?"

The teenager froze when he walked in the door at the sound of his uncle. Fighting Shadows had taken a longer time than he thought it would, it was nearly three in the morning. He knew they were close to rescuing Kanji, though. He wanted to keep going, but everyone else said to do it tomorrow.

"I…" he thought Dojima would have been in bed by now. His mind went blank.

"Nanako was worried sick."

"I'm sorry."

Dojima stood up from the couch and walked over to his nephew, towering over him, "Where were you, Souji?"

It was a demand, not a question.

"I… I…" the teen gulped, backing into the wall.

"Were you doing drugs?"

"No!"

"Were you dealing drugs?"

"No!"

"Then _where were you_?"

He looked away. He had to think of an excuse… A believable one…

"I was… I was at a… a strip bar… I snuck in…"

His uncle was quiet.

Souji thought he was off the hook.

"You're lying. Give me the real answer."

**[Balloon]**

"Souji-kun, you gonna finish your hot dog?"

"Mm."

Adachi sighed. The teenager wasn't paying attention; he was too busy staring at a cart of balloons. Adachi found a smile tint his lips at the bright shine in Souji's eyes as he watched the balloons sway back and forth in the light breeze.

The detective's smile grew when he went over, bought a balloon, and handed it to the teenager. The way Souji's face lit up made the rest of Adachi's day.

**[Cornered]**

Souji and Adachi stared at Nanako, who was staring intently at both.

"Mmm… I choose… Big Bro!" she pointed at the teen, amazing smile on her face, "Truth or dare?"

Dojima snickered at Souji's dilemma. No matter what you picked, the girl would always manage to make it unbelievingly awkward.

Souji sighed. He'd picked dare last time so… "Truth"

"Okay! Umm…" Nanako entered deep thought as she mulled over questions to ask him, "Umm… If… If you were a girl…" a light suddenly shot in her eyes, "would you marry Adachi-san? I think you'd be so cute together!"

Souji's mind froze over. Adachi looked at the floor in embarrassment. Dojima laughed. Nanako started at her cousin with giant eyes, mentally pushing him into the fetal position.

"I…" he paused, "…I… I don't know."

Nanako pouted, "Yes or no, Big Bro!"

He wanted to cry in a corner. If she caught him lying—she could always tell—she'd rat him out on it.

**[Dear]**

Adachi glared at the letter that was passed to him through the jail cell bars.

He picked it up and uninterestingly ripped it open, unfolding the letter and reading it.

"_Dear, Adachi-san,"_

He immediately ripped it to pieces.

**[Exposed]**

Adachi blushed. Souji blushed. He tried to run away, but Adachi pulled him back.

"You're not leaving."

"But, Adachi-san, I…"

"You have to help me with this…"

The men glanced at the passed out, drunk, and _naked_ Dojima on the couch. They couldn't let Nanako come downstairs and see this…

"You're putting his underwear and pants on…" Souji muttered, as he grabbed his uncle's shirt off the floor.

"…Course I am…"

**[Fluffy]**

"Adachi-san, your hair is so fluffy!"

He'd expect a comment like that from Nanako, not Souji… He also didn't expect the teen to start petting him like he was a dog.

**[Grass]**

The grass was wet, but he lay there anyway. It started to rain, and it felt like he would melt into the ground, but he lay there anyway.

Nobody was outside except for him.

Or so he thought, until he saw Adachi's yellow raincoat from the corner of his eye.

The grass was wet, it was raining, but both men lay there anyway.

**[Hug]**

"Nanako-chan was worried about you, Souji-kun."

"…I know."

"Why didn't you go home?"

"…Uncle… would yell at me…"

"He's worried too, you know…"

The teen remained quiet, before he looked up at the detective from where he sat. His eyes glistened with tears. That was all Adachi needed to get to Souji's level and hold him in a tight embrace, the teen crying in his shoulder.

"It'll be okay, Souji-kun… Just let it out, it'll be okay…"

**[Intelligent]**

"You thought you were smart, didn't you?"

A grin, "But I am."

**[Janitor]**

"Hey, Adachi-san, did you always wanna be a cop?"

"No."

"Well, what'd you wanna be then?"

"…A janitor."

"…R-Really?"

"Yeah. I would deliberately make messes so I could clean them up."

Souji was speechless.

**[Kitchen]**

"Adachi-san, go in the kitchen and make me a sandwich!"

"…Why?"

"Because I dominate you, that's why."

"…Since when?"

"Since I'm too lazy to get off the couch."

"…I'm not turning into your gopher too, Souji."

**[Long]**

The trip to Inaba felt so long. The trip leaving Inaba felt so long.

Why did the stay itself feel so short?

**[Migraine]**

His cell phone dropped to the floor. The sirens outside wouldn't stop pounding against his head. Kanji on the other line was nothing more than a whisper compared to the sirens. The clock ticking mimicked him, echoing louder than the sirens.

His head was reeling, he was seeing spots. He fell to his knees; the world was collapsing beneath him. His head pounded and grated and screamed. He was caught in a spinning vortex.

The world turned blue.

**[Nervous]**

"I can't go out there like this! I can't believe this! This is thousands of times more worse than a stupid beauty pageant! All they have to do is wear their swimsuits, and they do that at the beach! I don't see the problem!"

"Oh, you're just lashing out because you're nervous." Souji's grin couldn't have resembled a Cheshire cat's more than it did.

Yosuke grit his teeth, keeping the short skirt he had on pushed down, "Of course I'm nervous! And pissed! Aren't you?"

"Of course I'm not, I'm gorgeous!"

"…_What_?"

"Yeah! They'll love me! And if they don't, they're jealous and in denial."

Yosuke and Kanji watched as their leader sparkled in glee.

"…I thought only Teddie could do that."

"…Does that _matter_?"

**[Oh]**

"Souji-kun, why are you outsi—"

"Uncle tried cooking again."

"…Oh."

**[Panic]**

Souji couldn't believe it. He'd killed a man! Yes, it was out of self defense, but he still took someone's life!

The teen hesitantly stared at the lifeless stranger who had tried dragging him into an alley, and he gulped, before finding himself crying against his will as his legs gave out. He hadn't meant to kill the guy! He'd just wanted to knock him unconscious! Souji sobbed into his hands, trying to think of what to do. He wanted to run, to run and never look back, but he knew that wasn't it… He had to calm down… He had to calm down and call for help…

With trembling hands, he grabbed his cell phone and flipped it open. His friends could help, his uncle couldn't help due to becoming extremely sick, and Nanako definitely couldn't help… Shakily, he started punching in numbers, fingers barely able to connect with the pad. When it started to ring, Souji tried to calm his unsteady breathing and heartbeat. He couldn't.

It felt like hours before his call was answered.

"Hello?"

"A-A-Adachi-s-san…" the teen sniffed, his tears falling faster, "I-I-I-I k-killed s-s-some-o-one!"

There was silence.

"A-Adachi-s-s-san…?" the boy quaked, before adding, "I-It was s-self defense! I-I s-swear!"

"…I know, Souji-kun. You'd never do anything like that on purpose." The man sighed, "I'll be over there in a second, just…"

Whatever else the man had said was lost as a hand slapped the phone away, before quickly covering the teen's mouth. Time seemed to stop. Souji couldn't breathe. He couldn't think, he couldn't move.

Only when he started getting dragged away did he start screaming and struggling. The man he assumed he'd killed had still been alive. The adrenaline and fear in his system must have caused him to be mistaken when he'd checked for a pulse.

That adrenaline and fear rushed right back as he struggled to get free from the man's grasp once more. The world slowly started to fade to black…

**[Qualm]**

He wanted to say the uneasiness he was feeling wasn't from the car ride… He just didn't know what else it could be from.

**[Rage]**

"S-Souji-kun, you seem kinda…uh…tense? What's wrong?"

The teenager's smile twitched as he looked at Adachi. The sketchbook under him was filled with nothing but scribbles from what the detective could see.

"I signed up for this online course, right? Couple weeks ago, outta nowhere, I get a note saying I'm going to fail if I don't finish up to a certain point by Friday. So, I get it done…" the boy's eye twitched. "And then I learned I _did the wrong thing_ and I lost _eight-thousand yen_ because I _failed thanks to that_."

Adachi slowly backed away when the teen started laughing hysterically as he ripped the sketchbook to shreds.

**[Shoot]**

"I'll be over there in a second, just tell me where you are and…" Adachi glared when he heard something drop harshly. He knew it was Souji's cell phone getting knocked out of his hand, but he wanted to believe that it was a rock or something.

"Souji!" he called, just in case.

…Then he heard the sound of feet scuffling, the sound of muffled cries. Adachi grit his teeth and ran out of his office. Nobody would believe him if he said they had a situation. They didn't in the past. He had to get Dojima to confirm what he said was true, and since Dojima was severely sick, he was on his own. Sprinting out of the building, nobody bothered to ask him what was wrong.

After jumping in his worn-out car, Adachi sped out of the parking lot and hurried down the empty streets. Twenty minutes. It took twenty minutes for him to arrive at the part of Inaba that got extremely shady with crooks and villains at night. The man parked his car near an empty lot and started down the streets to look. He knew Souji would be here, he just knew it.

Streetlights flickered, signs overhead loomed menacingly, and Adachi shivered. It wasn't the surroundings that made him do so, and he wasn't the slightest bit cold, he just absolutely scared for Souji. Plenty of these thugs were capable of killing someone in five minutes, but made the torture for the victims feel like five months. Adachi hoped the twenty minute car drive hadn't stolen his chances of saving the teen.

Alley after alley, the detective kept his steps quiet and his ears sharp. His gun was concealed under his jacket, but he would be able to access it easily in seconds if it was needed. Seven alleys later, and he spotted Souji's cell. Adachi didn't bother picking it up, he instead headed into the alley, cautiously pulling out his gun as he did.

His pace quickened at the sound of muffled sobs, and his gun was immediately aimed at the thug beating Souji once he was only a couple feet away.

"Back away from him with your hands up and I won't shoot." He growled, hands clenched tightly around the weapon.

The man looked at him, emotionless. He quickly pinned Souji to the ground, slamming his foot on the teen's ribcage. Adachi grit his teeth as the man's hand twitched.

"Get away from him, and I won't shoot."

The assailant flashed a smirk before quickly grabbing a gun. He pointed it at Souji's head.

They both pulled the trigger.

**[Tainted]**

Souji shivered, curling up to the wall. Blood was on his face. He was too scared to wipe it off.

"Good, good, that's how you do it." He flinched at the voice, at that sinister, sinister voice. "Here, do it again, now to Hanamura. Go ahead. He wants to die anyway."

Souji stared at the gun being handed to him yet again. He could shoot the man before him in the heart, but something caused him to aim it at his friend.

"No, no, no, Souji, don't, please, Partn—"

The trigger was pulled. Souji found himself smiling before he gripped his head and cried in confusion. This wasn't happening… He wasn't… It was a dream… He… He didn't… He didn't enjoy killing… No… That's… Adachi was just filling his mind with…

"I'll let you choose who dies next."

Souji found himself pointing the gun at another friend without hesitation.

**[Ugly]**

"Adachi-san, do you think I'm ugly?"

"What? No! Of course not!"

"Then do you think I'm the prettiest thing in the world?"

"…You scare me sometimes."

**[Victory]**

Adachi stepped on Souji's throat, gun aimed at his head. The teen squirmed and struggled to move the man's foot, beads of sweat trailing down his face. It was getting hard to breathe, the crack in his glasses making multiple visions of the detective appear.

Adachi slowly raised his free hand and gave the teen a peace sign.

He turned it around before sending a bullet through the teen's skull.

**[Wisdom]**

"Adachi-san, you've had a lot of experiences with stuff, right?"

"Yeah, why? What's buggin' you, Souji-kun?"

"I was just wondering if you could tell me if people have been able to put their hands inside TV's before."

"…People thought they could when they were high. I got some wise words for you: lay off the drugs, or I'll get Dojima to find them."

**[X]**

Adachi noticed one of the vein's in Souji's right temple looked like an 'x'. The detective absentmindedly felt for his gun.

X did mark the spot, after all.

**[Yesterday]**

"…Adachi-san?"

"Yeah, Souji-kun, you need anything?"

The teen shook his head solemnly, small grin on his face, "No… I just wanted to thank you for saving my life yesterday."

A small smile twitched on the detective's lips as he cursed that moment in the alley, "You don't have to thank me, Souji-kun… It's my job… I just hope I don't have to do that again…"

Every time he woke up, Souji thanked Adachi for 'yesterday'.

'Yesterday' had been four months ago.

"Adachi-san, please don't cry…"

**[Zoo]**

"I've never been to a zoo."

Souji tilted his head in confusion as Nanako, Adachi, and even Dojima stared at him in absolute shock.

"…I-Is that bad?"


	8. Chapter 8

Fools

**[Abandon]**

Souji glanced around the table he was sitting at. No sign of his date was showing up. He'd texted her a couple minutes ago, but she didn't reply.

The teen sighed and shook his head, ready to leave.

"Are you ready to order?" he looked up at the waiter, smiling diligently, notepad in his hand.

"No… I think I'm just going to go…" he stared at the empty seat before him before taking out his wallet, handing the man a couple of bills, "Sorry for wasting your time. Happy Valentine's Day."

Souji scooted out of the chair, stuffing his wallet back in his pocket as he walked outside the restaurant. He thought that this year would be different, that he wouldn't get stood up on Valentine's Day.

Oh, how wrong he was.

**[Bullet]**

"Hey, Adachi-san, are you gonna get Valentine's gifts for people?"

"If I have enough money, Souji-kun…"

"Well, I can buy the gifts for you, and you can say they're from you if you want!"

"No, that's all right, really!"

When the teen turned around to a friend calling him, Adachi stared at the boy's back, where his heart would be.

He was going to get the teen a Valentine's all right… A bullet, straight through the heart.

**[Chocolate]**

"Uh, Souji-kun, how much chocolate did you buy…?"

The teen blinked, before glancing at the mountains of chocolate in his room, "I'm not sure… Maybe… uh… fifty… seventy-five… one-hundred pounds?"

The detective stared, "How are you going to get _all_ of this to your friends?"

The teen chuckled, "Huh? No! This is Valentine's chocolate for myself. The ones for my friends are downstairs and wrapped on the kitchen counter."

Adachi looked around again, "Y… You're kidding."

"Nope!" the smile Souji had plastered on his face told the older man that he was serious.

**[Date]**

"Hey, Adachi-san, do you have a date for Valentine's?"

"…To be honest… No, I don't."

"Wanna be mine?"

"…Honestly… No, I don't."

"You're no fun."

**[Elevator]**

It was the most nauseating elevator ride Adachi had ever been in.

Was it_ really_ necessary to paint the walls neon pink and plaster horrid, ugly, cut-outs of hearts and Cupid?

**[Farewell]**

"What the hell are you doing here?" Adachi drummed his fingers impatiently on the desk in front of him, telephone twitching in his hand. Souji looked to the floor.

"…I'm sorry." The boy whispered, clasping the phone tightly in his pale hands. "I know… I know you didn't want to see me again… T-To be honest… I didn't want to come here… I… I didn't want to see you dressed as a prisoner… I…"

"Get on with it."

Souji jumped, "S… Sorry…" he looked through the glass separating him and the former detective, "I just… I knew today would for some reason be the only day I got to see you before I leave next month… I wanted you to know I always thought of you as a friend, Adachi-san… I didn't want to believe you were the murderer… I didn't want to chase you down… I didn't want to get you arrested… And, today, I didn't want you to get nothing on Valentine's Day… I wanted to give you a box of chocolates, but they wouldn't let me…"

"You think I care?" Adachi sneered. "I hate you. I never liked you. Don't you _get it_? I want _nothing_ to do with you! I don't give a damn about you, or how you feel, or what you wanted to do! You know, I'm glad you're leaving for good; I never want to see your face ever again." He slammed the phone onto the receiver and stood up, the teen staring at him in shock.

Before the officer dragged him back to his cell, Adachi noted the teen whispered something to him.

'Goodbye.'

**[Galaxy]**

"Adachi-san, do you think they have love in other galaxies?"

Adachi stared at Souji quizzically, "Why wouldn't they?"

The teen shrugged, shoving his hands in his pockets.

**[Heart]**

"Big Bro, Adachi-san, how do I look?" Nanako smiled, twirling in a dress she was trying on at Junes. It was plastered in oddly coloured hearts which didn't blend well at all.

They didn't have the heart to tell her it looked bad.

**[Idiot]**

"Adachi-san, you're an idiot!"

The detective frowned at the laughing Souji, "Ow. When did you start taking after your uncle?"

"No, no! I mean… Girl's don't want _that_ on Valentine's!"

Adachi stared at the product in his hand, "…Why not?"

Souji's face was turning red from laughter, "D-Do you not know what that is?"

"Uuuh…"

Calming himself down, Souji whispered what it was in the detective's ear. Adachi immediately placed it back on the shelf and wiped his hands off on his pants.

He gave the teen a crooked grin, "H-How about you do the shopping?"

**[Jewelry]**

"Do women like necklaces and stuff on Valentine's?"

"No. Only chocolate."

"…Maybe Nanako-chan would be better help."

**[Kiss]**

"Happy Valentine's Day, Nanako."

Souji's grin grew as Nanako pulled him down to peck him on the cheek. When she opened the present, she kissed him again and then hugged his waist.

"I love you, Big Bro!"

**[Lie]**

"Adachi-san, you're funny!"

"Funny? Oh, but I was telling the truth, Souji."

The teen tilted his head in confusion as Adachi raised his gun, "But…"

The detective grinned, "I'm anything but a liar." And he pulled the trigger, bullet flying straight through the teen's heart.

**[Money]**

"Wh-Why does everything cost so much? My wallet's crying."

"My wallet's happy it gets to lose weight!"

"…Souji-kun… Please quit rubbing it in that you're rich."

**[Noise]**

"…What was that noise?"

"…What noise?"

"That, do you hear it?"

"Hear what, Souji-kun?"

"That springy sound! Like from a matt…ress…"

"…"

The teen buried his face in his hands.

**[Only]**

"I-I'm sorry, Big Bro, I couldn't get you a Valentine's present…" Nanako bit her lip, fiddling with the hem of her dress.

Souji laughed and ruffled her hair, "Don't worry, Nanako. Seeing your happy smile is the only Valentine's I need."

**[Puzzle]**

Adachi sighed and rubbed his temples, "I hate this stupid holiday… It's like a puzzle with a thousand pieces…"

Souji laughed, "No it's not! All you need to do is buy everyone chocolate! Problem solved!"

"But what if someone hates chocolate?"

Souji slowly turned serious, "Then they need to burn in hell."

**[Quiet]**

"Are you sure you don't want to be with your girlfriend right now, Souji-kun?"

The teen shook his head, staring at the stars overhead.

"Why not?"

"She'd want to watch romantic movies…" the teen sighed, "She'd want me to compliment her, and she'd beg me to stay the night… I spent the day with her, but now I want to just sit here…look at the stars…embrace the silence with a friend."

Adachi nodded, and looked up at the stars as well. The duo remained quiet for the rest of the night.

**[Race]**

"Adachi-saaaaan!" The detective jumped when Souji pounced on his desk, leaning in uncomfortably close.

"Wh-What the hell, Souji-kun?"

Nanako jumped into the detective's office, two plastic bags in her little hands. Souji grinned and hopped off the desk, before pointing at the older man,

"Adachi-san, I challenge you to a chocolate eating race! Whoever eats four boxes of chocolate first, wins!"

The detective raised an eyebrow, "…What does the winner get…?"

Souji's eyes widened, "Uh…"

"A tummy-ache!" Nanako giggled, placing the bags on the man's desk.

"Yeah! C'mon, Adachi-san, let's go!"

The detective sighed.

**[Smile]**

When Adachi handed him a Valentine's, Souji knew that the man's smile was genuine and not an act.

**[Tease]**

"Adachi-saaaaaaan!" Souji whined, pouting, "No faaaair! You're no faaaair!"

Adachi laughed, flicking another piece chocolate into his mouth.

"Nooooooo!"

"Come up here if you want some."

Souji glared, "How can I climb a tree with a broken leg?"

Adachi grinned, waving a piece of chocolate towards the teen, "Figure it out."

**[Utopia]**

It was an amusing sight, watching Souji rolling on the floor, with a giant chocolate bar happily clutched against his chest. At odd times, he would stop rolling and take a giant bite of the treat, practically squealing with joy before he started rolling again.

"Having fun there, Souji-kun?" Adachi laughed, recording the moment on his cell phone.

The teen stopped rolling and stared at him, face covered in chocolate stains, his eyes bright, "Fun? I'm in heaven!"

**[Veneer]**

When Adachi found himself actually _seriously_ contemplating what chocolate bundles to get Nanako, Dojima, and Souji for Valentine's, he found himself freaked out.

Was he starting to actually turn into his façade?

**[Waltz]**

"Adachi, dance with me!"

"Wh-Dojima, wait-I-!"

Souji and Nanako laughed as a drunken Dojima grabbed the younger detective, forcing him to dance.

"Big Bro, what kind of dance is that?" the young girl asked, giggling.

"I think… It's a new type of waltz."

"Oh, really?"

"Yeah! The drunken waltz!"

"Souji-kun, help me! He's gonna break something!"

**[X-Rated]**

Adachi stared at the gift he'd picked from the boxes. This was something he never thought he'd do… He never thought he'd attend a Valentine's Day _party_ where your Valentine's gift was absolutely random. All the gifts were placed on a giant table, and when the bottle landed on you, you went up and picked a gift that struck your fancy.

…He found it weird that a police force was holding this party, and allowed teens and children of families to join, even though there was going to be alcohol, drunks, and most definitely sex at some time.

"Uh… A-Adachi-san?" he looked at Souji who was hesitantly walking his way, the gift he'd picked looked like it had been hastily covered in its wrapping paper again. The boy's face was beet red.

"Yeah, what's the matter?"

"C… Can I talk to you alone?"

Adachi raised an eyebrow but led the teen to his office.

"…We can't stay here for long, you know. If Dojima-san notices that we're both not there, he might…get a very…_very_ wrong idea." The detective coughed, before glancing at the still blushing teen, "Anyway, what's on your mind?"

"Uh… Uh…" Souji fidgeted, "Wh-What did you pick from the gifts, Adachi-san?"

"Not sure, I haven't opened it."

"C-Can you… please?"

Adachi blinked before grabbing the gift and ripping the wrapping paper off. It was a box of chocolates. Typical.

"C-Can we trade?" Souji squeaked, jumping closer to the detective.

"Why? What'd you get?" Adachi placed the chocolates on his desk as Souji's face grew even redder.

"Uh… Uh… Th-This!" he shoved the hastily re-wrapped present into Adachi's hands, who easily pulled it off. He stared at it.

"…Oh."

"I…I'm sorry! I didn't know who else to… I mean… I-I'm sorry!" the teen squirmed where he was standing, burying his face in his hands.

Adachi sighed, "It's not your fault, Souji-kun… It's whoever decided a porno would make a good Valentine's gift… People are idiots. What if Nanako-chan picked this?"

The teen didn't reply.

"H-Hey, don't worry! I'll throw this out or something, okay? I won't-"

"ADACHI!" the duo jumped as Dojima slammed the door open. His face was flushed. He was drunk. "What the hell do…" the older man trailed off, staring at the visible cover of the DVD case Adachi held in his hands. He then looked at the chocolates, then to Souji, then to the TV in the corner of the room, and back to Adachi with the DVD.

"You were going to violate my nephew, weren't you?"

"W-What? No! I-I… D-Dojima-san… he just-!"

"What are you doing with date rape chocolate and a porn video then?"

"D-Date rape chocolate…?" he turned to the box of chocolates… Shit, it was. What kind of cop brought _those_ to a party with children and kids… Why would a COP even DO THAT?

"U-Uncle, he wasn't-"

"Souji, leave." Dojima cracked his knuckles, "Kids shouldn't see what I'm about to do to Adachi."

**[Year]**

"Aw, man, I can't wait until next year!"

"Why's that, Souji-kun?"

"I'll get more chocolate!"

"…You know we still have Easter, right?"

Souji stared at Adachi in what seemed like terrified delight.

"I can't believe I forgot!"

**[Zap]**

Adachi stared in disbelief at the sight of Souji, shaking his head. He found a short smile on his lips though.

"Oh, Adachi-san, there you are! How do you like my new clothes?"

Adachi chuckled, "They sure are…something, all right."

Souji pumped his fist in the air, "Damn right! With this outfit, all the ladies are gonna get zapped by my sexiness and fall in love!"

"Whatever you say."

* * *

**Sneakers:** Happy early Valentine's everyone! Hope you have a good one! :D

Imma be spending it in my room, playing video games, because I am just _that_ pro. You want to be me. ;D

And for some reason, I can really imagine Souji as a chocoholic...

And now I want chocolate. Crap.


	9. Chapter 9

Fools

**[A long time]**

"Adachi-saaaaaaaaaaaaaan!"

The detective tensed at the sudden force hugging him from behind, flailing and grasping onto the desk in front of him to not fall over.

"S-Souji-kun?!" he managed to sputter when he saw the teen's silver hair after looking over his shoulder, "What was that for?"

"It's been such a loooooooong time since we've talked!" Souji whined, staring back at the detective with wide, puppy eyes, "I needed to tell you so many things!"

"Really?! L-Like what?"

"How super awesome I am!"

"Hoo, boy."

**[Boring]**

Souji pouted, crossing his arms as he eyed Adachi up and down.

"Adachi-san, you're outfit is so dull and boring."

"It's… not supposed to be flashy, Souji-kun."

"I don't care! You're a detective! Detectives aren't boring—you _need_ to look all flashy and cool and wear sunglasses and dark suits! It's law!"

"…Souji-kun, no… no it's not."

"I just made it so! I'm the King!"

**[Castle]**

The four looked up at the towering castle before them, Chie lightly hopping on the spot in agitation.

"Poor Yukiko… she must be so scared in there."

"Don't worry, Chie, we'll get her out. Right, partner?"

Souji raised his hand enthusiastically, his face devoid of emotion, "The castle is my new home after we save Yukiko."

"…I don't even want to know, dude."

**[Decision]**

He only had the money to pay for one.

"C'mon, man, hurry up and decide. The others are almost done paying." Yosuke groaned from where he sat.

Souji turned around dramatically, rushing up the brunette and covering his mouth, "Sssssshhhhhhhhhhhh, shh sh shsh shh. I need concentration, Yosuke. Sh."

Yosuke merely rolled his eyes in response, and Souji went back to mulling, the rest of the group appearing behind the sitting teen.

"Wow, he _still_ hasn't decided?" Chie piped up, "Jeeze, and I thought I was bad at this kinda stuff."

"I don't know if I should admire him, or be scared." Rise mumbled.

"All right! I have made a decision!" Souji announced heartily, pounding one fist into his palm, before dramatically turning around and pointing at the group, "And that is you will all vote on which outfit is the most sexy on me!"

Yosuke's immediate reaction was to bury his face in his hands, "Why, bro, why…?"

**[Emotion]**

"Adachi-san, how you wound my emotions!"

"…Isn't it supposed to be your pride?"

**[Fault]**

"It wasn't my fault, Uncle!"

"Then whose fault was it?"

"…Yours?"

"Go to your room."

**[Grow up]**

"Big Bro, Adachi-san, is it fun to grow up?"

"Oh, sure! You get to be a manwh—"

Adachi immediately leaped up and leaned over the table, clasping his hand over Souji's mouth, laughing awkwardly at Nanako's confused stare.

"A manwh…?" she pondered, "A… man… horse? Big bro, you're a man horse?!"

The teen nodded enthusiastically behind Adachi's hand.

**[Hey]**

Souji sat on the couch, staring blankly at the TV. It wasn't on, and it wasn't close to midnight either. His phone lay sprawled on the living room floor. He didn't want to go outside, it was too gloomy. Too much fog. He didn't want to stay home. It was so empty. So gloomy. He didn't want to go to the hospital. Too sad. Too…

The teen braced his fists, falling down and burying his face into the closest pillow, hot tears streaming down his face. Dammit… Dammit, why? Why did… Why Nanako? Why his Uncle? Why..?

He jumped at the doorbell. It echoed across the walls.

The house was so empty.

Wiping the tears off on his sleeve, he got off the couch and slowly dragged himself to the door, opening it without looking to see who was outside.

"Hey."

It put a small smile on the teen's face, at least.

**[Ignite]**

The smell of burnt paper filled his nose, and Souji stared absent mindedly at the filled ash tray. He lightly tapped his middle finger to his thumb. It hurt. He guessed he burned it lightly…

He glanced over at the detective, who was laughing at the entire scene.

"I can't believe you actually did it!"

**[Jealous]**

"Don't be so jealous, Rise-chan!"

"I am not jealous, Senpai!"

"Please! I know you wish you had my perfect, prime, ass. Yosuke wishes he had it the most though. I know he stares at it aaalll the time."

After nearly choking on his food, Yosuke knew he should never try and eavesdrop on Souji's conversations ever again. Also…

"I DO NOT, NARUKAMI!"

**[Kill]**

"Kanji, stop."

"Stop what, Senpai?"

"Being so… so…"

"Senpai, you're kinda freakin' me out here."

Souji squealed, "That! Stop being so cute, Kanji, it's killing me!"

"C-Cute?!"

**[Living]**

The TV world was so different. Clean, serene, beautiful.

Souji looked at his feet.

"Hey, Partner, what's wrong?"

"We…" he choked, "we're all alive… I… I was so scared… but… but we… We… did it…" he was trembling as he turned around to look at his friends, tears streaming endlessly down his face. He was so happy, he couldn't even smile, "…We're all alive… We… we're still living… I-I…"

Yosuke laughed, tears in his eyes, "Hey, man, stop it! You're gonna make me cry, too, dude!"

**[Magic]**

"It is a room only those bound by a 'contract' may en—"

"If I become a magical girl, I want no part of it, Long Nose. I know what happens; I know your deal!"

Souji swore he saw the odd elf-guy's eyebrow twitch.

**[Nothing]**

"You came by yourself," Adachi's image sneered, "what are you, an idiot?"

"Nah, I'm nothing," Souji waved his hand nonchalantly, ignoring the gun in his face.

Adachi's image faltered to disgust as a sly smirk cornered Souji's smile and into his eyes, raising his eyebrows suggestively.

"Nothing but sexy."

"…Have I ever mentioned I really fucking hate your guts."

**[Ogle]**

"Souji-kun, please stop looking at me like that."

"But it's so fun making you uncomfortable! Same with Yosuke… and Kanji… oh and the girls… cept Rise, she returns the look and that's no fun…"

**[Perfect]**

"Adachi-san, do you think I'm perfect?"

"…In what way, exactly?" Adachi sighed at the smile, "Actually, don't answer that. Please."

**[Question]**

Nanako had been sent to her room to go to bed, and Dojima was passed out, drunk, on the couch.

"Shall we continue, Adachi-san? I think it was your turn."

Adachi scratched the back of his head, "Sure, why not? Truth or dare, Souji-kun."

"Truth!"

Adachi faltered, expecting another dare. He stitched his brow together, "All right…" what to ask, what to ask… "What's… your sexuality, Souji-kun?"

The teen gasped, "My, my, Adachi-san, how could you not know? I'm my-sexual, of course!"

The detective smiled in defeat, "Of course."

**[…]**

**[Zebra]**

"Adachi-san, if I paint black lines in my hair, would I look like a zebra?"

"…Uh…"

"Would I look like a cute zebra?"

"Souji-ku—"

"A _sexy_ zebra?"

—

**Sneakers:** I'm baaaaaack! God, it's been… two years? Yeah… writer's block slapped me in the face with like 500 fish, I'm sorry. Life was also hectic. I'll try updating as much as I can, and since I got P4 Golden and finished the P4 Animation (OH GOD I COULDN'T HANDLE THE GSHJKG) I'll try to get as many drabbles out as I can.

If you noticed, I cut out some of the alphabet! Yes, I was so brain dead on those sections, so I decided if I can't think of anything, I'll just cut that letter out. Also, I will be referring to Souji as Souji Narukami now, to combine Souji Seta and Yu Narukami since… yes. I likeSouji Narukami the best.

Also, for those who read Delayed Player, I HAVE THE SECOND-TO-LAST CHAPTER WRITTEN! I just desire my friend to read it over first before I post it online. Yes.

I'm so sorry for being gone so long, but it just… happened! It still may take me awhile to update, as I'm in college now, and it's a one year program and it's kicking my butt.

But hey! Good to be back!


	10. Chapter 10

Fools

**[Answer]**

Dojima sighed and flipped open his cell phone, pressing speed dial for a certain number.

He waited and waited until it finally told him his call couldn't be connected.The man tiredly rubbed his face in exasperation and looked at the clock on the stove.

_3:28_ it blinked.

Three in the morning and Souji wasn't home. This wasn't like him. If he was going to be late, he'd have at least called or texted someone.

Sighing, Dojima pressed the speed-dial number again, and waited. His call couldn't be connected. Getting off the couch, he slipped on his shoes before glancing at the ceiling. Nanako was sound asleep. He wondered if he should leave her a note, before deciding against it. Putting on his coat, he walked outside and locked the door, flipping open his cell phone again. He called a different number this time.

It took a while, but he was finally answered.

"_Uh… Hello?_"

"Adachi, get dressed."

"_Dojima-san? It's like three in the morn-_"

"Souji's missing."

**[Breathe]**

"Yosuke, you took it too far!"

"But, Partner, he-"

Souji shook his head in dismay before running to the unconscious Adachi on the floor of Magatsu Inaba. He wasn't moving. Naoto would have been better at this than he was, but she was busy trying to keep Kanji under control.

"Senpai, what are you doing?!" Rise screamed, "Leave him alone! He's gross and disgusting! He doesn't deserve a second chance!"

Souji didn't even turn to her as he started to perform CPR on his enemy. No… Souji didn't think of him as an enemy… More of a misguided friend. They were telling him to stop. Even Naoto was requesting that they just leave.

But how?! How could they just do that? He'd been there for them, as a friend!

It felt like hours, but the detective under him made no signs of returning to the living.

"Breathe, Adachi-san!"

Nothing.

"Breathe!"

Kanji and Yosuke had to pull him away. He managed to escape their grasp and tried CPR again. The man wasn't moving.

"Senpai…" he turned to Naoto, who stared at him, "…Leave him be."

"But…"

"He's gone, Senpai."

Souji shook his head, "No, you're lying! I can still…"

Naoto slapped him, but said nothing. Kanji and Yosuke had to pull him away again. Souji looked back at the fallen detective as his friends dragged him away. He still wasn't moving.

**[Childish]**

"Souji-kun, this is really childish…"

"Aw, but it's all in good fun, Adachi-san! See?"

The detective took the mirror, and shook his head in dismay. Souji had drawn an eye-patch, whiskers and coloured his nose black with face-paint.

"Now paint something on my face! Come on, it'll be fun!"

**[Dust]**

A knock appeared on the doorframe behind him, "Daddy, are you okay? Mom's been calling for a couple of minutes."

He turned back, looking at his teenage daughter with tears stinging the corner of his eyes. The girl's face was automatically pressed with concern and she hurriedly rushed over, kneeling next to her father.

The man gave a gentle smile, "Sorry, sorry. Don't worry, nothing's wrong. I just… found this when I was cleaning out the closet."

The girl curiously peered at the dusty box in her father's hands, "What is it?"

"Memories from my childhood… Probably the only good ones."

The girl squeezed her father's shoulder, knowing of his not-so-child-friendly past. "Can I see?"

"Of course."

He quickly blew away the dust on the box, and opened the lid. Inside there were pictures, some hand-drawn, and one a photograph. There were also two letters and what looked like a card from a game. The girl picked up the photograph first, laughing lightly.

"Oh my god, Daddy, is that you?" She pointed at the silver-haired teen in the middle of the picture.

"Yeah, that's your old man."

The girl laughed, "I bet you had quite a couple fans at your school!"

The man laughed with her, lightly ruffling her hair, "Come on, let's go downstairs before your Mother kills us."

"Will you tell me more about your friends here afterwards?"

"Certainly."

**[Erase]**

"Adachi-san, do you sometimes wish you could erase the world… and make a new one the way you want it?"

"Yeah… All the time."

**[Face]**

When he looked in the mirror, it used to scare him. But now, he was used to it.

When he looked in the mirror, he was looking at a different face. A different person.

**[Gone]**

"Dad, where's Big Bro?"

Dojima tried to force a smile; it didn't work out that well. He'd been missing for three days. He wasn't answering his calls. Some of his friends were missing too. Dojima assumed it was just a teenager thing, but…

"Is he missing? Did he leave? Where is he, Dad?" tears were welling up in her giant eyes.

"D-Don't worry, Nanako-chan! I'm sure he's just been hanging out with his friends! Or his jobs have been keeping him really busy!" Adachi piped up, as the girl fought away her tears.

Dojima sighed and stared at the clock, "Go to bed, Nanako. I promise you he'll be fine. I'll be up there to tuck you in in a sec."

The girl nodded tiredly and quickly bounded her way up the stairs. Adachi turned to his superior worriedly.

"Dojima-san…"

"Don't say it, Adachi. Just… don't say it."

**[Immortal]**

"Adachi-san?"

"Yeah, Souji-kun?"

"Memento mori."

"…Huh?"

**[Please]**

He decided against it at the last moment. He let Namatame go. He almost became… he almost killed… He was so blinded by rage… by… fear and… oh god, Nanako. Why Nanako?

Yosuke was yelling at him, even picked him up by the collar. Souji could feel the TV warp as the very edge of his back touched it. A cold chill shot through his entire body at the feeling, and he struggling to regain any composure. Somehow, he convinced his furious best friend, all of his friends, to… stop and think. They just… they needed to stop. They needed to think.

Teddie was missing.

The group bundled outside, before his friends parted ways and headed back home. Souji grit his teeth and walked back into the hospital. He hated hospitals… but…

His pace was brisk—precise—scared. He was so scared. So terrified. He almost… Yosuke almost… They all almost… And Nanako… Why? Why Nanako?

The teen was gritting his teeth and clenching his hands so tight he felt nothing.

"Souji-kun? What are you still… H-Hey—!"

The teen grabbed onto the detective without a word, digging his fingers as deep as he could into the man's coat as the tears mercilessly ran down his cheeks.

"…I'm sorry, kid…" the detective mumbled under his breath, returning the embrace awkwardly, "I wish I could do something, but…"

"…just…" Souji choked out, "…just… please…"

"…Sure thing, Souji-kun."

**[Time]**

Time seemed to stop as he stepped out of his car. He couldn't hear Adachi's words or the sirens or the yelling or the bystanders as they crowded around gossiping. He could only hear his footsteps echoing on the cold concrete as he made his way to the scene, not even noticing when he passed the police tape.

He continued to stare up, and only up. He saw three bodies hanging on telephone pole wires, but only one had his main focus; the only one with a visible face. The body was so pale, so blue. Wide, listless eyes seemed to be looking down at him.

Time seemed to skip when he found himself at home, staring at the front door blankly. It was still light out. He didn't even realize he'd left the scene. He slowly, shakily grabbed his keys from his pocket and unlocked the door, the low hum of the TV greeting him. Quickly, he closed the door and rushed to the living room, the sight of his daughter sitting on her cushion, staring blankly at the television screen, her tiny hands gripping onto the remote control for dear life.

"Nanako…" he quickly turned the broadcast off and took the remote from the girl's hands, picking her up and taking her to the couch, "Nanako… I…" he didn't know what to say. It was like when her mother…

The girl turned to her father, her eyes just as listless and dull as the body's…

"When will Big Bro be back? When will he be back?" she started muttering. She wouldn't stop. Over and over, she continued to mutter the phrase. Dojima sobbed, quickly pulling his daughter into a hug.

The next time he looked at the clock, the girl was asleep in his arms.

_3:28_ it blinked.

Three in the morning and Souji wasn't home…

**[Voice]**

"Is it cuz of my voice?"

"Dude, bro, please, I'm begging you, just… stop." Yosuke grimaced as his friend batted his eyelashes.

"Am I annoying you, Hana-chan? Do you not think I'm pretty?" He was pitching his voice so… so… why was he doing this, "But you and Kan-chan are both my t—"

"No, seriously, stop it, man; you're freaking me out!"

**[Wound]**

He'd went in the TV alone. He decided that he was going to train by himself so he could be stronger. He'd almost failed everyone once before… and he almost did again. He barely managed to make it out of the world, using a GoHo-M just in time as a Shadow was ready to tear him in half.

He'd been in there longer than he thought. Junes was locked up, and no lights were on. He could feel his arm bleeding, his head bleeding.

He limped to a wall and slid down, digging for his phone. No matter which arm he used, they both hurt, but he grit his teeth and bared the pain, calling his uncle.

The answer was immediate.

"_Souji, where the hell are you?!_"

"Uncle… It hurts… Blood… I…"

"_What hurts? Souji, where are you?!_"

"…" his vision clouded over, and he tried to say something, but blood was the only thing that flew out of his mouth before he fell limp.

"_Souji? Souji, answer me! Souji!_"

**[Yell]**

People were yelling. So many things he couldn't hear, but they were yelling. Souji strained to open his eyes, the blurry image of feet scrambling around entering his sight.

"Partner? Hey, stay with me!" he lightly rolled his head, Yosuke kneeling over him, "We called an ambulance! Help is on the way, just stay awake, man!"

His head was pounding, everything hurt.

Everyone was yelling.

Souji shut his eyes, "Please… shut up…"

**[Zero]**

He was limitless—had infinite amounts of potential and options.

But here he was, the day before he left for home, alone with Adachi in that same jail cell where he saw Nanako on the midnight channel…

He walked over with infinite amounts of potential and options—staring at the letter, the lighter… the man with the mischievous smile… He felt like he only had the one.

His hands moved on their own.


	11. Chapter 11

Fools

**[Crave]**

The teen was craving food. Actually, not even food. Just something. Something he could eat. Food or not, he was going to devour the first thing he found in the fridge.

Souji pulled himself up off the couch in an exceedingly exaggerated movement, dragging himself to the fridge, Nanako watching him for a moment before turning back to her recorded cartoons. Souji stared at the first thing that caught his eye. A pot of grass or something.

It would do.

As he went to grab his "meal" the teen glanced at the clock on the stove. 11:42. Oh, right, the Midnight Channel was on.

"Nanako, you should be going to bed. It's almost midnight."

"Is it that late already?" he heard the girl sigh as she dejectedly turned the TV off, "All right… Night, Big Bro."

"Night, kiddo."

As the child retreated to her room, Souji grabbed the plant and marched to his own room, munching on the leaves as he waited for the Midnight Channel. He didn't remember when he fell asleep.

"Hey, Big Bro, have you seen my science project?" the teen blinked groggily at Nanako's question as he headed into the kitchen the next morning, "I kept it in the fridge, but it's not there."

"What'd it look like, Nanako?"

"It was a pot of grass."

Souji almost choked on his glass of water (thankfully his back was turned), "No, Nanako, I haven't seen it. Sorry."

"Oh…"

His stomach hurt.

**[Delinquent]**

After putting on his night clothes, Souji stared at the blank TV in his room, glued to the spot he stood on. There was no image on the screen, and the midnight channel wasn't going to appear for a couple more hours. He didn't need to watch it, however; they already knew Adachi was in there.

…Adachi.

The teen sighed. He'd figured out the detective was the killer around the second or third time he visited the Dojima's house… but part of him really didn't care. He hadn't wanted to get involved in all of this in the first place, but Hanamura and Satonaka somehow roped him into it. Did he even think of them as friends?

Why was he even here? He would have been fine in the city, by himself. He was living alone perfectly fine at the moment…

Souji dug into his pocket and flipped his phone open, surfing through his texts.

It was strange… he considered Adachi more of a friend then the "Investigation Team". God, he was a horrible person… befriending a murderer who probably wanted him dead just like Yamano and Konishi.

The teen hit the last of his texts, another obnoxious flirt from Rise. He found himself disappointed—he'd been hoping Adachi had sent him a text before throwing himself in the TV. Souji glanced at the clock in the corner of his phone's interface.

Junes would still be open…

Naoto had advised him earlier not to go alone.

…But Naoto wasn't his mother. Hell, he didn't even listen to his uncle much.

He was going alone.

**[Everything]**

"Narukami-kun!"

"Souji!"

"B-Big Bro!? N-No!"

The teen slumped to the floor, clutching tightly at the wounds gracing his torso. He looked up at the gang members, blood pooling out of his mouth as they paled in realization that the teen hadn't been alone, and that his furious uncle was running at them full speed. The gangsters fled as fast as they could, and Souji would have smiled at the scene of his uncle chasing them down if he wasn't having a ferocious time trying to remember to breathe.

"Narukami-kun, oh god that's… ah shit…" Adachi scrambled next to the teen, Nanako hesitantly standing behind him, silent tears falling down her face at the sight. Souji could only stare at her. He tried to smile, to reassure her that was going to be fine, but his trembling fingers couldn't stop the blood flow, he was getting dizzy and everything was fading. He couldn't even tell if he was breathing or not—he was completely unaware of himself.

"…An ambulance is on its way, okay?" Adachi was visibly panicking, "Y-You should lie down… You should… I... It's going to be fine, Narukami-kun, Nanako-chan! Everything will be okay!"

**[Fool]**

'_Now let me just say this:_

_You're a dumbass.'_

A smile crept on his lips as he read the sentence. He wouldn't have it any other way.

**[G-Word]**

Yosuke and Chie froze up as Kanji loomed over them. Crap, he was tall. Crap, he had big muscles. Crap, they were _so_ screwed.

"…the hell are you two doin'?"

Yosuke gulped, racking his brain for a quick lie, "Oh, well, you see… w-we're… we're just two crazy lovebirds! Ha ha…"

Chie turned her head so quick he was surprised she didn't break her neck, "Whaddya mean 'bird'?!" she seethed through her grit teeth.

Yosuke glared, leaning in close to whisper, "Play along, birdbrain!" as he eyed Kanji wearily.

"Hey… didn't I see you guys yesterday?" The bleached haired teen questioned, his beady eyes darting back and forth between the two. Yosuke froze as multitudes of sweat rolled down his back. Oh crap, they were so so _soooo_ dead.

The brunette laughed, completely unable to hide his nervousness, "C-C'mon! I-It just so happens we were walking behind you guys! P-Pure coincidence!" He looked around hastily before throwing his thumb over his shoulder, "H-Hey, our houses are juuust over thiiis way sooo… w-we'll be going now!"

He quickly grabbed Chie's shoulders in vain, hoping he'd be able to get them to run away as fast as he could before the super tall, super muscular guy beat them to a bloody pulp.

But Chie had to go and open her mouth.

"Um, look, we weren't planning on getting in you guys' way, and there's nothing wrong with being gay or—mmph?!"

Yosuke quickly covered the girl's lips with his hand, "You can't say that! This isn't the anime script!"

Chie looked at him like he was crazy.

"…G-Gay?"

Oh crap.

**[Hero]**

"So, we've been assigned to do a pretty tricky play…" the drama club manager sighed in exasperation, "…We're supposed to do it based off that Nintendo game, Legend of Zelda. The problem is, we can't give any lines to Link, he has to remain silent other than grunts. I don't know why they kept th… ah, yes, Narukami-kun?"

"I volunteer for the part."

Yumi laughed, "It fits him perfectly!"

**[Jester]**

"Adachi-san, watch!" Souji beamed readily as he demonstrated the rubber band trick he showed Nanako a couple nights ago.

"Hm… not bad." The detective laughed, before leaning over and grabbing the elastic, "Here, let me show you one."

Souji's eyes lit up in amazement before he sprawled himself out on the floor in utter drama, "Hoooooowwwwww?!"

**[Loathe]**

Souji lay on his couch, throwing one of his rolled up socks into the air before catching it and resuming the motion.

He heard the rain start to fall outside—the paps and patters as the droplets ran down the roof seeming to link into a dismal rhythm.

He turned his head lazily towards the TV, his upper lip furling in agitation at the yellow glow that appeared. A static-filled figure appeared in the haze of the screen, and the teen grabbed the balled up sock and flung it at the screen, uncaring that he was now halfway off the couch.

He hated this place.

**[Mirror]**

"Souji… what are you doing?"

"Checking myself out."

"In a compact mirror."

"Mhm."

"…Is it your girlfriend's?"

"God no! Hers never embodies me right."

**[Peace]**

"Big Bro! Welcome home!" The teen turned to face his cousin who dashed in the door, clambering up on the couch and hugging him at the waist.

Souji laughed, patting the girl on the head. Jeeze, how'd her hair grow so long in just a couple of months, "Shouldn't I be saying that to you, Nana?"

The girl's eyes widened, and she looked at her cousin in horror, "Oh no, you're right! I'll do it again!" Before Souji could object, Nanako was dashing back out the front door and opening it again just as quickly.

"Big Bro! I'm home!"

"Welcome home, Nana!"

**[Reprobate]**

Junes was near deserted, only a couple stray workers and customers here and there that he could see. They paid him no mind as he walked by and into the electronics department. He hadn't bothered changing out of his pajamas, he'd just put his jacket on and left. He realized he'd forgotten to lock the door.

Oh well—the two biggest threats of Inaba were incapacitated right now; one in the hospital, and one in the TV.

The teen looked over his shoulder, knowing Naoto or someone else in the team may have been concerned, disbelieving he wouldn't confront Adachi alone. All he saw were rows of TV's and various electronic devices behind him. Souji smirked in satisfaction before sliding himself into the screen, the waves of electricity soothing and calming as they rolled over his body. The moment he landed in the alternate world, Souji slipped on his glasses as he headed in the direction to where Adachi would be.

It was silent, other than his barely echoing footsteps.

He arrived at the room where a sense of warm and stagnant air fluttered senselessly out of the red-and-black spiralled portal caved into the wall, greeting him. The teen walked over, strides long in motion, and stopped before entering. Adachi wasn't just going to let him waltz in there—Adachi was going to be angry he came alone. He was going to close the portal.

Another smirk fell on his face as the entrance to Adachi's dungeon closed in, a gun raised to the back of his head.

"You're no fun, Narukami. Where's all your friends, huh?"

"Sleeping, I'd assume."

The detective clicked his tongue, "So why aren't you, huh? You come here to try to set me straight?" the hiss in his voice sent shivers down the teen's back.

"Not at all, Adachi-san." Souji turned around, greeted by thin air. He blinked, and the older man was propped in the chair under the noose, hunched over, arms resting lazily on his legs. He looked at the teen with both disgust and curiosity.

The two stared at each other for a long moment, before Adachi 's brow furrowed in aggravation. He sat back in the chair and crossed his arms, tapping his heel on the floor as he eyed the teen wearily. Souji, in response, gave a closed-eyes smile, and stalked over to the bed, kicking off his shoes as he threw himself onto it.

"You think you're brave? Smart?" Adachi seethed from his seat, "You're not dealing with that dumbass I made myself out to be, you st—"

"Oh, I know," Souji hummed, rotating his hand in dismissal, "I figured you out early on. Guess what, Adachi-san? I don't care."

The detective was silent.

**[Stupid]**

The brunettes clasped their hands and bowed, "We're sorry to say that our mission failed." They hastily apologized.

"We didn't have much luck either. Nobody showed up." Yukiko commented with a wry smile in the hopes of making the two feel better.

Souji nodded absent-mindedly, "Let's just go home. I have a feeling Kanji will take it the wrong way if he sees us standing outside his shop again." Oh… wait…

Yosuke slowly brought his hands back to his side, head turning ever so slowly to the female brunette as he straightened himself out, "Speaking of 'wrong way'… Why the hell did you go and say that, Chie?!"

Chie eyes widened in horror before she turned it into a sneer, "I-I don't know?! It just came out! Why did you call us 'lovebirds' anyway?!"

"To make him think that we weren't _stalking_ him!"

"W-Well you could have warned me in advance!"

"I DID WHEN WE LEFT THE SCHOOL GATES."

"Weeell… it was a dumb idea in the first place! Who would believe that we're dating? I mean… just look at you!"

"What's wrong with how I look?! What about you?!"

"What ABOUT me?!"

The silver-haired teen stared at the two, expressionless, before he glanced up the hill—only to see a very familiar tall, muscular teen heading their way. He whipped out his phone and checked the time, "I just remembered I had plans for after this fiasco. It seems I'm late. I'll see you guys later."

Before the other teens could respond, Souji was already jogging down the street and nearly out of site. Yukiko raised a hand to her mouth, "Oh no… do you think he made those plans before we decided to do the stakeout?"

"What stakeout? Why the hell are you guys here again?"

The three of them froze in place.

"Hey, aren't you those two lovebirds I just saw?"

Despite his fear, Yosuke flashed a grin at Chie, who stomped on his foot.

**[Terrified]**

"Yosuke, listen to me!" Souji grasped at the sides of the table as Hanamura gripped him tightly by the shirt.

"Why didn't you throw him in?!" The brunette snarled, nodding his head at the cowering and mentally-unstable Namatame in the corner.

Sweat rolled down Souji's brow, "We're _missing_ something, Yosuke!"

"Missing what?!" Souji grimaced as he was forcefully shoved against the table, his back barely warping through the TV.

"Stop it, Yosuke!" Chie screamed. Souji knew she wanted to intervene, but was too shocked to move.

"Tell me what we're missing, Narukami!" Yosuke spat, pushing his friend further along the short gap between the TV World and reality, "If you don't, I'll throw him in myself!"

Souji's nails were digging hard into the wood of the table, "Just think about it for a moment, you idiot!"

Yosuke's gaze darkened. Souji realized the brunette didn't realize what he was doing… but…

"Why are YOU so fucking pissed anyway?!" Souji yelled, "She's MY family, you fucking dick! Do you even know how _I _feel? Do ANY of you? My seven year old cousin is dead, and now MY friends are yelling at ME. My BEST FRIEND is almost _pushing me into a death trap as we speak._"

Yosuke paled.

Souji was crying by now as he pointed to the distraught Namatame, "I'm just as terrified as he is." His voice cracked as he spoke.

**[Wolf]**

"You don't care, huh?" Adachi finally spoke up, and Souji could hear the chair creak as the man lifted himself. The teen's breath hitched as the older man leaned over him, hands ever so close to his neck, the cold metallic gun grazing his skin ever so lightly. The detective brought his lips next to Souji's ear, grin beaming as the words snaked through his barely parted lips, "What exactly do you mean by that?"

"I mean I don't care," Souji chuckled lightly, opening his eyes to look at the ceiling with a half-lidded view, "I don't care about the murders… about those stupid investigations… exams… Nana and Dojima are the only things I care about…" he paused, a tight curl etching into his smile, "…and you."

Adachi clicked his tongue again, seemingly in amusement, "Is that so?" Souji could hear and feel the rumble of a chortle in the detective's throat, "Why would that be?"

"You're one of the most interesting people in this rundown town."

Adachi lifted himself up, laughing the entire way. He looked down at the teen, "You get to be friends with a goddamned idol who worships the ground _you_ walk on, and _I'm_ the most interesting person in this town?"

Souji sat up as much as he could, replying with a simple, "Yes" before taking the gun from Adachi, throwing it aside, and pulling the man back down on top of him.


End file.
